Endless Summer Book One: Mind-Talker
by GlamourChick1668
Summary: A fan novelization of Endless Summer, featuring my own F!MC, Alodia
1. Welcome to Paradise

**_Author's Notes: This is a fan novelization of Endless Summer, featuring my female MC, Alodia. The story is basically the Endless Summer you know and love, but certain scenes are expanded, condensed, or moved around to better suit the narrative as it applies to the main character as I played her. You will also stumble across scenes that never happened in the original story, but which added characterization, or addressed things that bothered me when I played the game myself._**

 ** _If you take issue with any of this, please turn back now. Otherwise, settle in, enjoy, and don't forget to review. I love reviews._**

 **ACT I: LA HUERTA**

 **Chapter One**

 **Welcome to Paradise**

 _A dense, steaming jungle surrounds me, foliage so thick that I can barely see the sky through the breaks between the leaves. There is a ruggedly handsome man beside me with sandy-brown hair that falls into bright blue eyes and action-hero stubble shadowing his jaw. Around his neck he wears military dog tags._

 _"Get down!" he shouts. "It's coming this way!" His arms snap shut around me like a vise and he pulls me down into the brush. I sink into the pile of leaves and branches without being scratched. They claim me and take me in easy as brightly-colored plastic balls in an inflatable ball pit._

 _And suddenly the jungle is gone, replaced by a cold, gray concrete warehouse. The rugged action-hero has been replaced by another unbelievably handsome man. This one is a statuesque Adonis with mocha-colored skin who reaches for me with desperation in his shining dark eyes._

 _"Alodia! Give me your hand!"_

 _Then he, too, disappears, and now I am standing at the edge of a volcano, staring into ruby-red magma that bubbles and spits like the brew in a witches' cauldron. A middle-aged man in a brown suit and tie looks at me from the other side of the volcano's mouth, his goateed lips curled into a serpentine smile._

 _"You don't understand, do you." Somehow, I can hear him perfectly from across the volcano's gaping maw, though he barely speaks above a whisper. "Of course not. But you will. In time."_

...Something suddenly pushes hard at me from the side and I snap awake, gasping, my heart knocking violently against my ribs. Sunlight pours in from the window beside my airplane seat, making my eyes water. I blink the spots out of my vision and scrub at my eyes with clammy, trembling fingertips. I turn away from the window to find a familiar face on the other side. Diego Ortiz Soto, my best friend since we were both in diapers, looks back at me, a goofy smirk on his handsome, boyish face.

"Morning, sleepyhead."

At the sight of him, my heart begins to slow its frantic rhythm. I smile back.

"I'm not still dreaming, right?"

"Doesn't feel real, does it. But it is. We're finally on our way."

He's right that it doesn't feel real. When representatives of Rourke International appeared on the campus of Hartfeld University in Massachusetts ten months ago to announce their contest, I nearly ignored them entirely. The grand prize was a week-long, all-expenses paid vacation at The Celestial, a luxury resort on the Caribbean island of La Huerta. There were only ten available spots, and at least half the campus was entering. Diego was the one who convinced me to put my name in. What could it hurt, he reasoned. It wasn't as if I'd be any worse off if I didn't win. So, I entered and promptly forgot about it. Then, six months ago, Diego offered to fetch my mail for me one day when I was laid up with bronchitis. He returned to our campus apartment in record time, shrieking and waving two yellow envelopes at me, bearing the logo of Rourke International.

Now, I cast my eyes around the small plane that bears us and the rest of the winners to our destination. I don't know any of them except for Diego. Well, I briefly met Raj at the airport in Costa Rica. He's a big guy with an even bigger personality. A massive mountain of a man, he would be impressively large even without the Buddha belly, over which is currently stretched a well-worn T-shirt reading "Freshly Baked." He has a warm, easy smile, and as my ears begin to pick out snippets of conversation, I hear him laugh about being too deep in debt to afford instant ramen.

His comment is met with a snicker from the beefy Asian kid in the Hartfeld letterman jacket that sits beside him, ...I think that one's name might be Craig. And not far from them is Grace, whom I also met at the airport. She's a mousy girl with dark chocolate skin, curly hair cut just above her shoulders and bright, eager eyes shining behind her glasses.

"Hey! Earth to Allie!" Diego waves a hand in fronts of my eyes and brings me back to the present. "You all right? Bad dream?"

My hand has drifted up to massage my brow. I feel a slight headache building behind my eyes. I sigh and force my hand back to my lap.

"Not bad. Just weird. I dreamt about..." I suddenly sit up straighter, my eyes going wide. "About him!"

I point to the lavatory, out of which has just walked the mocha-skinned adonis from my dream. Diego follows my gaze.

"You dreamt about Sean Gayle?" Before I can stop him, he has shuffled me out of my seat and is pushing me towards the aisle. "Well, what are you waiting for? Go talk to him!"

I stumble out into the aisle, and collide with Sean Gayle. He looks down at me with the same shining brown eyes from my dream. Except without any of the fear and desperation. He smiles down at me, a perfect movie star smile, and I feel my belly flutter.

"Well, hello there," he says in a baritone voice that ought to come with a warning label.

Diego pops up over my shoulder. "My friend Alodia here wants to say something."

Sean raises an eyebrow at me. I arrange my features into a coquettish smile. In spite of my mouth suddenly feeling dry, I manage to say in what sounds to me like a sufficiently sexy purr, "Ever wanted to hook up on an airplane?"

Sean laughs. "You know, it's on my bucket list..."

"Oh, yeah?"

"But unfortunately, I might've missed my chance this time. I think we're landing soon."

"What a shame. I'll have to ask you sooner on the flight home."

"I hope you do," he says, winking at me as he slips by.

The moment Sean's taken his seat, Diego cracks up. He collapses into his seat, his cell phone in hand.

"Oh, man, got that whole thing on video! You _gotta_ see your face!"

I snatch the phone out of his hand and lightly noogie him. "You troll! No cell phones on airplanes! And no more shoving me at hotties!"

He grins. "Fine, I'll turn off my cell phone if you give it back to me. But no promises about shoving you at hotties."

I drop the cell phone in his lap. "You're lucky you're adorable. Because as a wingman, you kinda suck."

"Aww, you love me." He picks up the phone and frowns. "Huh. Is it really 5:15 already? We should have landed by now. ...But I didn't think you were snoring that long."

"Hilarious. I'll go check with the pilot, see if something's up."

I scoot out of the row of seats, and make my way up the aisle towards the curtain that separates the cabin from the cockpit. As I pass by, a voice rises above the chatter.

"Excuse me!" a young man with an upperclass English accent snaps. "Will all of you please cease your babbling?! The tour guide is trying to speak!"

Our tour guide is Lila. A slight pixie of a 20-something woman with smooth doe-brown skin, and silky brown hair cropped close to her neck and framing an eager, pretty face. She is bubbly, energetic, and endlessly enthusiastic. She would have made a great cheerleader when she was in school. Now, she wears a yellow Rourke International polo tucked into khaki shorts, and the tops of her perfectly white crew socks are folded down neatly and tucked under the tongues of her hiking boots. Damned if it doesn't look like the outfit she was born to wear. All she's missing right now is the baseball cap and fanny pack.

Lila claps her hands, smiling at the English kid. "Thank you, Aleister. As your tour guide for the week, I just want to say that we should all try to...you know, be friends. It is an island, after all, so you're kinda stuck with each other!"

Lila giggles at her own joke. As I pass by, I notice a girl with an eyebrow piercing and black hair in a purple-streaked undercut sinking further into her seat.

"Is it too late to jump out of the plane?" she mutters, loud enough to be heard, but apparently not interested in whether anyone does hear.

I push through the curtain into the cockpit. The pilot is lounging in his chair, combat boots up on the control panel in front of him.

"Excuse me. ...It's Jake, right? Weren't we supposed to have landed by now...?" An unintelligable series of grunts floats up from the chair, followed by a snort. "...Wait...are you _asleep?!_ "

I grab the pilot's shoulder and shake him, my annoyance expressed in the force of my grip. He starts awake, and my grip suddenly slackens. I retreat a few steps, feeling ice trickle down from the top of my head.

I know the pilot's face. The action hero with the military dog tags from the jungle in my dreams has pinned his bright blue gaze on me.

"Listen, Princess," he drawls in a Southern accent. "Don'tcha know it's rude to wake someone while they're napping?"

I raise an eyebrow. " 'Princess'?"

He shrugs. "What can I say. I give nicknames to people who annoy me."

"In that case, I'm gonna have to call you Top Gun."

Jake blinks at me, an almost imperceptible smile on his face. "Top Gun?" He shakes his head and resets his features to register indignation. "Hang on, you can't be giving nicknames. That's my thing."

"I dunno. I like it. Might keep doing it."

He lets out a short bark of laughter. "You ain't clever enough to keep 'em coming. Takes work to be as good as me."

"Whatever, Top Gun. Back to my question."

Jake swings his chair back towards his instrument panel. "Relax. We ain't landing 'til..." He trails off, frowning. "...The hell...? That time ain't right. ...And that ain't right, either..."

He gives the instrument panel a few pounds with the side of his fist. I roll my eyes.

"What are you, the Fonz?" He ignores me. "...Are you sure you know what you're doing?"

"If you knew half the things I've survived, you'd bet on me to get you through anyth-"

A sudden wave of turbulence crashes into the plane. I connect hard with the wall of the cockpit, air rushing out of my lungs with an inelegant croak. Jake picks himself off the floor and drags himself back into the chair.

"Dammit...this stormfront's moving in fast." He grabs the yoke. "Get your ass in a seat, hear? And tell everybody to buckle up."

"But what-"

"Now, Princess!"

His voice brooks no argument. I stumble back towards the cabin as air currents hammer the plane, tossing it from side to side. Through the windows, I see dark clouds closing in over us like a blanket. A particularly strong wave knocks me off my feet and onto the floor of the aisle.

"Ohhh, I am really regretting that airport Chipotle!" Raj groans.

"Don't puke, bro!" Craig yells. "If you puke, I'm gonna puke!"

"Where the hell did this storm come from?!" a girl shouts from behind them. "It was a clear day!"

"It happens, okay?" Jake calls from the cockpit. "This is totally normal!"

The girl with the undercut stares out the window. "Yeah. Sure. THAT looks normal."

As I drag myself to my feet, clutching the back of the seat for support, I see what has her attention. Yellow-orange balls of electricity exploding in the sky, lightning arching off of them like veins.

"It looks like ball lightning," Grace says. "But I've never seen anything quite like this."

Aleister grasps fistfuls of his pale hair, shaking his head frantically. "No, this isn't right! I can't die here, surrounded by these morons!"

"Everyone, just breathe!" Sean shouts. "We're going to get through this!"

A deafening crack of thunder rips through the sky and echoes through the cabin. I turn back in time to see sparks fly in the cockpit.

"Engines just lost power!" Jake shouts. "I'm bringing 'er down manually. Everyone hang on!"

My classmates are panicking around me now, screaming. All but one. In the back row, I catch sight of a girl in a pale blue hoodie, her dark hair pulled into a tight ponytail, sitting quietly in her seat, her body effortlessly rocking in tandem with the motion of the plane. As she turns her face slightly towards me, I catch sight of a long scar over her right eye.

"Alodia!" Lila's voice snaps me back to the present. "Safety first! Please find a seat!"

Not that I have much choice. The next hammer of air sends me tumbling into an empty seat. I hastily fasten my seatbelt, and turn to see who I've landed beside.

A pale beauty with long copper hair clutches the armrests with a white-knuckled grip. Crystal blue eyes are fixed stubbornly on the seat back in front of her. Her breath comes out through clenched teeth.

"Just breathe," I tell her. "It will pass."

"This can't happen," she gasps between shallow, labored breaths. "Not yet. It's too soon..."

"Hey...why couldn't the melons get married?"

She looks at me with confusion. "...What?"

I grin. "Because they cantaloupe."

For a moment, she just stares at me. Then a smile starts to play around her mouth. "...Because they...can't elope? That is the dumbest joke I've ever heard!" But it starts her laughing, and her laughter is musical.

"Are you positively mad?!" Aleister snaps. "This isn't the time for jokes!"

"No," she says. "It's the perfect time for jokes."

She smiles sweetly at me and holds out her hand. I take it and give it a squeeze. "I'm Alodia, by the way."

"Quinn."

"Just a little further!" Jake's voice comes from the cockpit. "We're almost out!"

Bright orange light floods the cabin from the lighting outside, and for a moment, I'm blinded. But when the spots clear from my vision, I see the plane surrounded by clear blue sky.

"Woohoo! We're alive!" Raj crows.

Quinn's vise grip on my hand loosens and she looks out the window, gasping. "Look, Alodia! There it is!"

"Get a good look now, everyone!" Jake calls. "We're coming in fast! Welcome to La Huerta!"

And there it is. Rising out of the endless, rolling blue sea, its shores licked by frothy waves, a billowing green mass of an island. The dark, jagged peak of a volcano pokes up over the tree tops surrounding it, exhaling a white column of smoke. From this angle, it looks a bit like gravy poured over a pile of green mashed potatoes. Or chocolate drizzled on top of a bowl of mint ice cream. It is breath-taking. And that is only increased as we glide towards it and spots of blue, purple, yellow, orange, and red reveal themselves in the clouds of green.

"La Huerta Tower," Jake says into his headset, "this is tail number XC-DMK, requesting emergency priority to land." There is a moment of silence. "Carlos! Pick up, you lazy bastard! It's Jake!" Another pause. "Ignoring me won't make me forget the hundred bucks you owe me. Like it or not, we're coming in!"

It's not the smoothest landing I've ever been through. But at least the landing gear seems to work, because the plane doesn't land on her belly. It comes to a stop on a dirt strip safely shy of the trees, and Jake guides it into the hangar. The doors are opened, and we all descend the boarding ladder, ready to collect our bags. I smirk at Jake.

"Rough landing, Top Gun. Hope you don't work for tips."

He laughs. "You kidding? I'm a damn hero for even getting you on the ground." He heads out of the hangar, shouting, "Carlos! I need a tune-up! ...Carlos!"

Jake marches off in search of Carlos. Meanwhile, we start pulling our luggage out of the open cargo bay.

"This island's supposed to be one of the most beautiful places on earth. The beaches, the waterfalls..."

"It's also home to a plethora of rare flora and fauna!" Grace says happily.

"Only ten spots on this trip, and they had to give one to this dork," Craig mutters.

I reach for the handle of my suitcase, and my hand brushes Sean's. He snatches his hand back, blushing.

"Oh, sorry."

I grin. "Hey, if you want to carry my bags, go right ahead."

"Oh, my god! Could you be any more desperate?"

I turn at the new voice. An unbelievably gorgeous Asian woman with bleached blonde hair drapes her arms around Sean. Colorful make-up is applied thick as pancake batter to her face, lain on with skill and artistry that I cannot help but find impressive. She seems to deliberately flout the "make it look like you're not wearing any" philosophy of make-up that I was taught, and she totally gets away with it. She looks like a peacock or a showgirl in the best way possible. She scowls at me.

"People like you always hover around the spotlight like moths," she sneers.

"...Spotlight? What?"

"Yeah, right. As if you don't know who Sean is."

"Seriously?" Craig chimes in. "Our superstar quarterback? ...The Heisman frontrunner?"

"Guys..." Sean shifts uncomfortably. "It's cool. Chill out."

"Look," the girl says, "Sean doesn't need any famehounds hanging around, got it?"

A surge of temper bubbles up from my gut and hits my tongue. "So what are _you_ doing here?" I snap. I feel guilty for it, but I cannot help but enjoy the look on her face. She's pretty cute when she's furious.

"Ex- _cuse_ me?!"

"You heard me," I say sweetly. "You're just stalling to think up a comeback. Don't worry, I'll wait."

Her eyes go wide. "You-!" She sputters helplessly for a moment, and it's adorable.

Apparently, Sean doesn't agree with me. "Michelle!" he snaps. "Can you chill? And I don't mean Netflix and chill, I mean actual chill. Please."

The two of them start to argue, so I excuse myself. As I back away, I hear something clink against the heel of my sneaker and reflexively turn to see what it is. I bend and carefully pick up a narrow metal cylinder with a bright red plume at one end and a long hollow needle at the other.

Diego comes up beside me, his duffle bag on his shoulder. "Is that...a tranquilizer dart? Can I see?" He holds out his hand, and I pass it to him. He looks it over for a moment. "The vial's nearly empty. It must've hit its target."

"Looks like a pretty big dose. Whatever animal this took down must have been huge."

Diego grins wickedly. "You mean _if_ they took it down."

I give him a light swat on the shoulder. Then something else catches my eye. Or rather, someone. The dark-haired girl in the blue hoodie, the one with the scar over her eye, is hovering nearby, listening to our conversation.

"Hey...Diego...who is that?"

He turns follow my gaze. "...I dunno." He turns back to grin at me again. "Got eyes for the mysterious hottie?"

I poke him. "Not that, you brat. ...There's something... _off_ about her..."

"What gives you that idea?"

For a moment, I'm not sure. I cast my eyes around at the rest of my classmates, milling around with their luggage, slowly organizing themselves into clusters. Craig and Sean with Raj and Michelle nearby, Grace and Aleister and the girl with the undercut, Quinn...

...I look back at Diego, and it hits me like a bolt of lightning.

"...There are too many of us," I whisper.

"Too many?"

"We were told that ten students had won this trip, right? Count us off. Not including the pilot or the guide...she makes eleven."

"You're right. And I don't think I've ever seen her before. ...Who is she?"

I look back at the girl and her eyes lock with mine. For a moment, her eyes trap me. I try to look away, but I'm held fast, drawn into those glittering dark pools that seem to look right through me.

"Hey! Lila! Where the hell are your people?"

Jake's voice seems to break whatever spell I was under. The quiet girl looks away. I shake myself back to reality.

"There's nobody here!" Jake says, storming up to Lila.

He's right. Our group are the only ones here.

"They should be here in a shuttle to take us up to the resort, but..." For a moment, Lila looks nervous. Then she smiles brightly. "I'm sure it's just a slight delay. No need to fret. They'll be here any minute."

Jake snorts in frustration. "The hell with that. I'm going up to the control tower to get some answers."

"What do you think is going on there?" I ask.

"No idea." His face is grim. "Call it a gut feeling, but whatever it is, it ain't good. So, Princess. You comin' or not?"

"...What? Me?"

"I could go with you," Michelle offers.

"Wasn't talkin' to you, Maybelline," Jake answers tersely.

Diego elbows me and leans close to my ear. "Go with him, Allie," he whispers, "He's hot."

"And you have a one-track mind," I mutter back. But I shrug and say more loudly, "Sure, I'll come along."

"Um...okay. Sure." Lila says hesitantly. "I guess...the rest of you follow me? We'll take the short walk up to the resort. Sounds fun, right? Yay! ...Um...Quinn? Where are you going?"

Quinn skips past Lila, unbuttoning her blouse.

"Some of us would like to explore the beach first! We'll meet you guys at the resort." She stops just in front of me, fiddling with her top button. "This button's stuck. ...Alodia, will you help me?"

I blink. Suddenly, Quinn, her delicate face, and her pert breasts are just inches from my body. She smiles sweetly, nodding at the button that rests at her cleavage.

"Uh...sure." I slip the top button out of its hole. The blouse slides sensuously off of Quinn's pale shoulders.

"That's better. You should come check out the beach with us when you're done at the control tower."

"Yeah. Sure thing." She skips off and I exhale slowly, my eyes lingering on the shapely bottom hugged by a pair of daisy dukes. Something tells me Quinn and those huge blue eyes of hers are going to be trouble. Not to mention that round butt...

I force myself to look away and follow Jake towards the control tower.

"...So, it's cool if I join you?"

He raises an eyebrow at me. "I invited you, Princess. You ask permission for everything?"

The stairs to the control tower are rusted and rickety. I grip the railings tightly as I carefully climb, focusing on the lush emerald rainforest stretching endlessly before me. I feel a goofy, contented smile playing around my mouth.

"This place is so gorgeous," I sigh. "You fly out here a lot, Top Gun?"

"Here and every other privately owned resort island in the Caribbean," he says with something like a sneer in his voice. "The favored vacation spots of the young and privileged."

"You don't sound like you like it much."

"Hey, it pays the bar tab."

"What got you into this business?"

"What gets anyone into anything? Necessity. I had a plane, a pilot's license, a dishonorable discharge, and an empty bank account. What is this anyway, Twenty Questions?"

"...Sorry."

There's a moment of silence, but then Jake continues on his own.

"...Look. I'm from Louisiana. And if ferrying rich jerks around a couple times a week is the price I gotta pay to never set foot back there, hell, I'll pay it."

His continuing feels like permission to ask my next question. "You mentioned a dishonorable discharge...?"

"Yeah. I was in the navy. Fighter pilot."

"...What did you do?"

"...Punched my commanding officer in the jaw."

His answer makes me physically pause for a moment. "...I'm sure he deserved it," I say after a moment.

As if sensing that I've stopped climbing, Jake does, too, a few steps ahead of me. He doesn't look back at me. "Yeah. He did." His shoulders lift and drop briefly. "...Been sleeping in a beach hammock in Costa Rica ever since."

"Sounds lonely," I say before I can stop myself.

"Yeah. That's the appeal."

"I mean, I get wanting to get away for a little while, but don't you want more? Someone to come home to, someone to listen to you...someone to hold you all through the night..."

Now he turns back to me, smirking. "You offering, Princess?"

I feel my cheeks growing hot. "What...? No, I...I just meant...in theory..."

He locks eyes with me. "In theory, I wanted to be the best pilot the Navy had ever seen. In practice..." He shrugs. "Well, you can't beat a cold beer and a Caribbean sunset."

He turns and starts up the stairs again. After a moment, I follow. I lift my foot and put it down on one rusted metal step, but as I lift the other, the step gives way beneath me. My heart leaps to my mouth as I drop into empty air.

"Jake!" No sooner has his name escaped my lips than his rough hands wrap around my wrists. I abruptly stop falling, pain lancing through my shoulders.

"Gotcha!" He yanks me upwards, pulling me against him as I scramble to find my footing. The two halves of the step spiral fifty feet to the dirt below. I watch them falling, clutching Jake for support until I can stop trembling. "You okay, Princess?"

I nod weakly. "...I think you may have just saved my life."

"Now you owe me one." He pulls back gently, frowning at the rusted step. "And that's one more smack I'm giving Carlos. Should have replaced these steps months ago. Come on."

We reach the top of the tower, and Jake pushes the door open. "Carlos, you dumb..." He stops short, suddenly realizing he's speaking to an empty room. Control screens and buttons are dark. The door to the lavatory—which looks like it's even smaller than the one on the airplane—is open, and the room inside is dark, too.

"...There's no one here," I remark.

"Thanks, Eagle Eyes, I couldn't tell."

Ignoring his tone, I walk over to the desk and trail my hand over the equipment. My palm comes away coated with dust.

"Are you sure they still use this airstrip?"

"Of course I'm sure. I was here just here a few days ago, and I'm damn sure..."

He trails off. He looks over my shoulder and his eyes go wide. I turn, and I can't help gasping.

In the distance, an aurora of red, blue, and green light pulses, not only in the sky, but in the island itself, dancing over the treetops and the glowing ocean. Jake moves to touch the glass, beautiful colors playing over his face like lights reflected from beneath water. I move with him, taking his hand almost as a gut reaction. His fingers lace with mine.

"Jake...what is this?"

"I...I don't know..."

He turns to look at me, and our eyes meet, our faces shimmering in the aurora's light. I feel time slowing down around me. Then I blink, and the beautiful colors in the sky are gone.

"...It stopped," is all I can say.

Jake exhales and looks down to where our fingers are still entwined. He coughs and draws his hand back. "Uh...sorry. It...must have been something...weird with the glass here. Who knows. Forget it. Just...come on."

Jake ducks out. I hesitate for a moment, watching the sky for the aurora's return. But there is no trace of it. I reluctantly follow.

We carefully navigate the stairs down to solid ground again, taking care to avoid the broken step. As we descend, I can see Quinn and the others at the beach.

"I'm heading up to the hotel to catch up with Lila. Carlos must be up there. Which way are you heading?"

"I told Quinn I'd catch up with her at the beach. Good luck finding your friend."

Jake nods at me, and I head towards the beach, slipping off my shoes to step onto the sand. It's fine and smooth and warm. I dig my feet into it, sighing contentedly.

Quinn, stripped down to a pale blue bikini, twirls her way over to me across the sand, laughing. "This must be heaven!"

Raj spreads his arms and falls backwards into the sand. "Yup. I'm staying right here all week. I'm never moving ever again. ...Can someone get me a beer?"

"The beach is nice," Michelle says. Then she turns to glare at me. "Too bad Alodia's here."

Craig snorts. "Nice one, Meech."

She turns her glare onto Craig. "Call me Meech again, and I'll rip your spine out by your stupid hair."

"Isn't this magical?" Quinn sighs. "It's like we have the whole island to ourselves."

"It's pretty peaceful," I agree. I look out at the sparkling water. "The water looks amazing. I'd love to go swimming."

"Who says we can't?" She grabs my head and pulls me towards the water.

"Haha! Hang on! I've got a bathing suit on under here!" I pause just long enough to strip off jeans and shirt. Quinn smiles.

"I hope you're a good swimmer."

"Me?" I laugh. "Practically an Olympian." Not exactly true, but I rarely let the truth get in the way of a flirt. Besides, I can hold my own in the water. I've been a gymnast and a dancer most of my life, so my limbs are strong.

"Good. Because I'm not the best at it. So if anything happens, just carry me back to the beach and give me CPR, okay?"

"Sure, I'll be your hero."

Hand in hand, we wade into the water. The currents are gentle and the temperature is perfect. Just cool enough to be refreshing without being a shock.

"God, is anything on this island not perfect?"

"Not so far!" Quinn laughs.

I smile. I like hearing her laugh. "Second question: are you always this spontaneous?"

Quinn's smile falters. She gazes out over the horizon.

"...No. I wasn't always like this. But after last year, I've tried to make the most out of every day." She goes quiet. I feel something chilly creeping into my belly.

"...What happened last year?"

She swallows. "Let's just say...I was very afraid. But I don't have to worry about that anymore." Suddenly, she gasps. "Alodia! Look!"

There is a small flash as something leaps out of the water and unfurls wings that gleam like jewels in the sun. To my utter disbelief, I realize that it's a seahorse. A multicolored seahorse with iridescent butterfly's wings. It flutters in front of Quinn, who watches it with rapture. After a moment, it darts off, fast as a hummingbird.

"Did that seriously just happen?! Alodia, have you ever seen anything like that?" Quinn turns and calls out to the others on shore. "Guys, did you see that?!"

"Huh? Who cares?" Craig answers. "Do you see _this?!"_

I shield my eyes and see that Craig is burying a snoring Raj under a pile of sand.

"Ugh! Quit goofing around, Craig!" Michelle snaps. "Everyone else went up to the hotel already. Come on, let's catch up! Who's gonna carry my bag?"

The others start drifting up towards the hotel, leaving me alone with Quinn in the swirling surf.

"I...can't believe it. They missed it! It was incredible!"

"You and I are the only ones who saw it," Quinn says. "It's almost like...we shared a secret. ...I'm glad you were with me, Alodia."

"Yeah. Me too."

We head back to the beach and get dressed before following the others. Suitcases in hand, our whole group makes its way up the winding pathway towards the resort. By the time we round the last bend, my legs are throbbing and my throat burns with thirst. But that is forgotten when we see the resort, a building of elegant modern design, gleaming like a palace in the sun.

"Welcome to The Celestial!" Lila says with a flourish of her arms. "The jewel of the Caribbean!"

"Aw, hell yeah!" Craig crows. "That's what I'm talking about!"

"Is this place even real?" Raj breathes.

"Let's go! My luxury suite awaits!"

A long, ornamented overhang of white marble shades the entranceway from the sun, held up by glistening marble pillars. Anticipation floods my chest, and I throw an arm around Diego's shoulders.

"We're here, Diego! Get ready for the most amazing week of our lives!"

We rush through the automatic doors. ...And we immediately freeze. No one speaks. No one moves. The silence is deafening. Nothing breaks it. Nothing.

There is no one else here.


	2. Private Party

The geometric-printed carpet that covers the Celestial's expansive lobby is dotted here and there with suitcases and luggage racks. A half-finished glass of wine sits on the table. But the concierge desk is deserted. The suitcases are abandoned.

"Where is everybody!" Michelle taps the concierge bell impatiently. "I mean, helloooooooooo!"

No answer.

Sean puffs up his cheeks and blows out the breath through barely parted teeth. The noise sounds bewildered. "Sooo...this'll make for one weird-ass Yelp review."

"The hotel staff knew we were coming this week, right?" Grace says nervously. "This is not good."

"What are you complaining about dweeb?" Craig snorts. "We have the whole hotel to ourselves! This is sick!"

I shake my head. "This is totally creepy. I'm with Grace on this one. Something like this doesn't just happen. We should try to figure out if something is seriously wrong."

Grace smiles gratefully at me. "Thanks for backing me up, Alodia. I don't want to sound like I'm raining on everyone's parade."

"But you _are_ raining on it!" Craig insists. "You're going full-on _monsoon_ on my parade."

Raj pops up from behind the bar, grinning. "At least the booze is still here. Who's up for a mai tai?"

Diego picks up the half-finished glass of wine sitting on a table beside a lounge chair. "Check it out, Allie. Fresh lipstick on the rim. It's like everyone just suddenly up and left."

"But without their luggage," Quinn chimes in. "Why?"

I'm noticing something else, something that's making me that much more nervous. "Hey...guys? Check your phones, will you? ...Because I'm not getting any service."

Diego pulls out his phone and frowns. "...I'm not getting service either."

"Not me, either," Quinn says. One by one, my classmates confirm it. None of us have cell phone service.

"Maybe they don't got any towers here," Craig suggests.

Aleister groans. "Of course the island has cell phone towers, you colossal buffoon!"

"And how would _you_ know that?" the girl with the undercut asks warily.

Aleister looks taken aback. "I...well...of course, I..." Abruptly, he regains his composure, features settling into a cold sneer. "Perhaps because I'm not a complete imbecile? They were plainly visible in the distance on our approach."

"Allie, what do you think's happening?" Diego asks.

"...I'm thinking there was some kind of incident."

"An incident?"

"Yeah. You know, like a gas leak or an outbreak of plague or something, and everyone had to leave."

"That's...not implausible actually," Grace says. "This is a volcanic island, after all."

"Lila, what do you..." I stop, looking around for our guide. "...Uh...has anyone seen Lila?"

Slowly, we wander outside, where we find Lila pacing like a tiger in a cage.

"Lila?" Grace approaches cautiously. "Are you okay?"

"Oh, me? I'm perfect! I'm sure this is positively nothing to worry about! I bet it's just a fire drill." She flashes a far-too-bright smile at us. "Or maybe even a hotel-wide beach picnic!"

Jake snorts derisively. "Yeah, or maybe the Care Bears came down from the clouds and took everyone to Happy-Happy Land."

"That's not helping," Sean growls.

"Have you even watched an episode of Care Bears," Raj mutters. "You just sound ignorant."

Jake ignores Raj, turning to glare at Sean. "Not helping? You're the ones sitting around playing story time. How about getting some real answers? Truth is, I'm not here to help. I'm here to get paid. And right now, ain't nobody here to pay me."

"We're only getting answers if someone around here shows some leadership," Sean shoots back. "Looks like you're not up to the task."

"You throw a ball around and you think that qualifies you to talk to me about leadership?"

Sean draws himself up and takes a step closer to Jake. Jake responds, squaring off. For my part, I've had enough, and push in between them.

"Will both of you quit puffing your chests?" I snap. "The only thing that's getting us nowhere is this stupid macho display!"

I admit, my ego is rather tickled by the surprise fighting contrition in their faces, as if I were a teacher pulling apart two boys wrestling on the playground.

"Whoa, hang on-" Sean protests.

"Captain America here's trying to-"

I raise my hand sharply, cutting them off. "Don't wanna hear it. Shake hands. Then put your heads together and help us figure this out."

The two of them size each other up. Then, grudgingly, they shake hands.

"Better?"

"Yeah," Sean says. "We're good."

"Sure, whatever," Jake grunts.

"Great. We've got the power of friendship," Diego quips. "Now what are we supposed to do, Allie?"

I suddenly realize Diego isn't the only one looking at me for guidance. ...Everyone is. Even Lila. I hesitate, but only for a moment. Someone has to step up here.

"I...Well, there has to be something around here that will tell us what happened, right? I say we split up and search the hotel."

"Oh, wonderful idea, Alodia!" Lila says, back to her perky self.

"Hmmm, maybe I'll find something by the pool," Grace suggests.

"The pool, huh?" Jake says. "I like the way you think. I'll go with Brain Trust."

Raj turns to Craig. "Yo, Craig, if things were normal, what would we be doing right now?"

"Uh...eating?"

"Exactly. Let's check the restaurant."

"Perfect!" Lila turns to the girl with the undercut. "Where would you like to look Zahra?"

"Don't care," Zahra mutters.

"Well...how about we check the ballroom?"

"Still don't care."

"Where are you headed?" I ask Diego.

"I thought I'd check out the pool."

"I'll go with the ballroom group then." I grin. "We'll spread the dynamic duo out. Lets more people benefit from our superpowers." ...Besides that, it kinda looks like Quinn is drifting towards the ballroom group.

He catches where my gaze is lingering and grins back. "Yeah. Good plan, Batman. Meet you back here in a bit." I start off when something makes me stop.

"...What is it?" Diego asks.

"That girl...the quiet one in the hoodie." I do a quick head count just to be sure. "...She's gone."

"...You're right...but...hey, let's worry about one thing at a time, okay?"

"...Yeah. Yeah, you're right. I'll catch up with you later."

But I can't shake the electric feeling that fizzes in my veins when I remember the way that girl held my gaze.

Lila leads me, Zahra, and Quinn to the ballroom. It is as beautiful and ornate as I expected a ballroom at a Rourke International resort to be, with crystal chandeliers, skylights, ivory painted walls, and soft blue carpet with an elaborate interweaving design like Celtic knotwork. The dais at the head of the room features a wood archway decorated with irises, lilies and roses of all colors, and some flowers I don't even recognize. More flowers, ribbons, and garlands decorate the walls and the chairs surrounding the tables set up on the carpet that surrounds the dancefloor like the sea around an island.

"...Looks like they were in the middle of a wedding."

"Oh, good," Zahra mutters. "Alodia is here to state the obvious. Dunno how we would've coped without that."

I feel a smirk tug at the corner of my mouth. "You like being the jerk, huh?"

"Wow, two in a row. You're on a roll."

"What could've happened here?" Lila murmurs. "Everything's perfectly intact. The champagne's poured, the flowers arranged..."

"Just no people," Quinn finishes.

"Maybe the bride realized that the institution of marriage is a joke and hightailed it outta here," Zahra says. Lila gives her a look that is almost wounded.

"Marriage? A joke?"

I cast my eye over the beautiful set up. "Weddings like this don't mean a thing without true love," I say almost to myself. "It's nice to have a big, beautiful ceremony, but as long as you're with your soulmate, who cares?"

Quinn smiles at me. "You really think that?"

I smile back. "Doesn't everyone?"

Zahra snorts. "At first I thought you were a captive of the marital-industrial complex, but it turns out you're even more of a sap. You believe in _soulmates_."

"Guilty as charged," I say with a shrug.

Zahra reaches for a bottle of white wine from the table nearest to her and pops the cork.

"Zahra!" Lila chides her, "that does not belong to us!"

"Gonna report me?" Zahra asks, pouring herself a glass. "To who exactly? Gimme a break. Last I checked, this was still a vacation."

She fills another glass and offers it to me. I shrug and take the glass, clinking it against hers and taking a sip. Delicate, fruity sweetness floods my mouth, resting gently on my tongue before slipping down my throat with a warmth that just slightly tips into alcoholic burning.

"Woooah...I did not realize wine could be that good..."

"That is some seriously good stuff," Zahra agrees. "They must've spent outta control on this."

I offer Quinn my glass. "Wanna sip?"

"Oh, what the hell. Might never have the chance again, right?" She takes the glass. For a moment she tips it back and forth, watching the golden-yellow liquid ebb and flow against the sides of the glass before taking a swallow. She pauses, considering the flavor with a thoughtful expression, looking like an experienced vintner. After delicately smacking her lips once or twice, the takes the bottle from Zahra. She studies the label, and her eyes go wide.

"Look at this label! This wine was from 1922!"

"Zahra!" Lila shrieks. "You just uncorked an eight-hundred-dollar bottle of wine!"

Zahra burps. "Meh. It wasn't _that_ good."

"Hang on! Look!" I am already darting from table to table examining the other wine bottles. "Every bottle on every table at this wedding is pre-1924!"

"Who would spend that much on wine?"

Zahra raises her index finger like a cartoon detective. "The answer, as for most baffling questions, is 'crazy rich people'."

Quinn looks askance at her for a moment before shaking her head dismissively. "Not sure what else we're going to find here, but we should probably head back and see what the others found."

"Whatever," Zahra says with a shrug. "But I'm bringing the booze."

Everyone is already back in the lobby when we get there. I rejoin Diego.

"Find anything by the pool?"

"Nope. No one there. So much for the cabana boys," he sighs. Then he grins. "But Aleister totally freaked out when Grace was nice to him."

"We found something in the restaurant!" Craig annouces. "Well, kind of. It was on the volcano. But it was there...and then it was like...not!"

The rest of us stare at him for a long moment. Then Sean clears his throat.

"It was a light. Or something reflecting sunlight. It must have been rotating because we saw it in intervals."

"We basically stumbled onto a wedding straight out of the Roaring Twenties," Quinn says. "But...no people there, either."

I notice Aleister standing off by himself. He is looking up at a towering painting of a goateed man in a brown suit, holding a sword of emerald. I feel my blood tingling in my veins again. I know his face. ...I've seen it leering down at me as I teetered on the edge of a volcano.

 _You don't understand, do you? Of course not. But you will...in time._

"Aleister...who is that?"

"Hrn? Oh...Alodia...That's Everett Rourke. C.E.O of Rourke International. The man who built this resort."

"Rourke. ...I think I've seen him before."

"Hmmph. Who hasn't? Visionary...genius...conquerer of every industry..." He looks up at the painting with what can only be described as bitter disdain. "I still think he looks like a fool."

He turns and marches off, bumping right into Grace.

"Grace, I...uh..." He scowls. "Just watch where you're going!"

He brushes past her. Grace watches him go with such a wounded look that I can't help putting an arm around her. She looks up at me.

"Alodia, can we talk for a second? You seem like someone I can trust..."

"What is it? If it's about Aleister, I don't think you should take it personally. He-"

"No, no, it's not that...it's..." She shakes her head. "No...never mind. Sorry. I should go."

I take my arm off her, studying her for a moment.

"...Alright...But if you've got a secret, I'm pretty good at keeping secrets. ...But if you don't want to share it, that's all right, too."

"...It...it is?"

"Sure. I trust if it's something important, you'll share it eventually."

Grace pauses, biting her lip. Then, she pulls something from under her sweater.

"...I found this out by the pool. It was right by the fence. And the bars there were...twisted."

I look at what she's showing me. It's a tooth. A massive, pointed tooth that she can just barely close her small hand around. My breath catches in my throat.

"Oh, my God! It's gotta be a foot long!"

"Whatever this came from, its big. ...I didn't want to share it because I was afraid it would scare everyone. The way it scared me. But...we're all in this together, and everyone should know."

We gather the others to show them Grace's find.

"No way," Jake breathes. "There's nothing with teeth that size these days. It has to be a fossil, right?" He looks around for confirmation from the rest of us, but no one is quite sure what to make of it.

"So...after all this," Sean says, "we're saying we still have no idea where the staff and guests went?"

"All we've got is more questions," Quinn concedes.

"So...what do we do now?" Zahra asks.

"You go to bed." We all turn at the voice coming from behind us. The girl in the blue hoodie has reappeared. "Night is falling. You should all get some rest."

"What is she?" Deigo whispers to me. "The Cheshire Cat?"

"Nope. Not nearly smiley enough," I whisper back.

"Estela!" Lila exclaims. "There you are! Where have you been?"

"Looking around," she says in an accent I can't quite place. "Same as you."

"Did you find anything?" Michelle asks.

"Nothing that matters to you people."

"Shouldn't you let us decide that?" I mutter.

She pins me with her piercing gaze. "...We've all got secrets." She turns away and vaults the check-in desk, where she snatches a room key off the wall. "Like I said. Night is falling. I suggest you get some rest. You will need it."

Without another word, she marches down the hall, leaving the rest of us in bewildered silence.

"...What the hell was that supposed to mean?" Sean mutters.

"Think she means it's nighttime, bro," Craig quips.

"Well," Lila says, "it is getting late, and we'll want to be ready to greet everyone when they return from...wherever. Please take the key to your assigned room from behind the desk."

"Assigned?" Zahra scoffs. "Yeah right!"

She climbs behind the desk and selects a key shaped like a queen chess piece from a higher spot on the wall. She grins at us and twirls the keyring on her index finger.

"Hotel's empty, right? I'm taking a penthouse suite!"

Jake shrugs and grabs a decorative key for himself. "Don't mind if I do."

Some of the others follow suit. Diego looks thoughtfully at the wall of keys.

"Gonna give yourself an upgrade, Allie?"

"Ah, what the hell." I grab a key with a palm-tree shaped head. "You only live once, right?"

"Guess so." He grabs one with a head shaped like a fish. "...What do you think this one is?"

I grin. "Only one way to find out. Come on, let's stash our stuff."

We ride the elevator to the penthouse level and head towards our respective rooms. I turn the key in the lock and push open the door. I am immediately hit with the scent of clean linen and carpet with just a touch of dust that permeates every hotel room I have ever been in. But there's another scent on top of it this time, something fresher and more natural. When I turn on the light, I see it probably has something to do with the tree in the center of the room that runs through the middle of a circular wooden table in the center of the room, and the vine garlands that run over the stone walls and wind around the pillars. Two rope hammocks form a right angle of sorts around the table.

The bathroom is done all in stone, making it look like a cave. Even the toilet is made to look like stone, although thankfully the lid and the seat are properly sanded wood. The shower is stone on all sides, except for the frosted glass door. There's also a deep hot tub, also decorated to look stone so that it resembles a pool at the bottom of a waterfall.

Slipping off my sandles, I let my feet sink into the plush mottled green and brown carpet and make my way into the bedroom, where amidst more vines and what looks like tribal masks hanging on the walls, a queen-sized canopy bed and stone nightstands wait for me. The whole suite's ceiling is a painted canopy of leaves, permeated by soft golden light that leaves dappled patterns on the objects beneath.

A knock on the door makes my heart quicken. I take a moment to peek at myself in the mirror and smooth my shirt before I open the door.

Deigo waits on the other side. "What's up?"

"Oh! Hi, Diego."

He grins that knowing grin of his. "Expecting someone else?"

"What? No, I..."

"Yeah, uh-huh, sure." He slings an arm over my shoulders. "I know you too well, Allie. If you're crushing on someone here, I'm gonna figure out who it is eventually. So you may as well tell me."

"Oh, why would I spoil the fun of trying to figure it out for you?"

"Fair enough. Well, from the way you were making eyes, the gorgeous redhead is the most likely candidate right now. But the heart-stoppingly handsome Sean Gayle could also be a contender. Or...maybe the pilot with the bedroom eyes? He seems keen on you."

I poke his temple. "Not telling. Too early to tell."

When I shut the door, he seems to remember that he is in my room and looks around, whistling lowly.

"In the words of that old dude from _Indiana Jones,_ you chose wisely. Is it too late to trade?"

"You snooze, you lose, pal. ...What did the fish key give you?"

"Coral Reef room."

"That...actually sounds pretty cool."

"It's not bad. The walls are aquariums. I like aquariums." He wanders into the bedroom and bellyflops onto my bed. "Ohh, but this is nice. Especially at the end of a day like today."

I flop down beside him and ruffle his hair. "Hey...what do you think is going on here?"

He rolls over onto his back, lacing his fingers behind his head. "Well, I know this is only because I watch an unhealthy amount of movies...but remember how I was saying I wanted this week to be an adventure? One that will stay with us forever? Maybe...just maybe, the universe is finally listening." He shakes his head, laughing at himself. "Of course, given my luck with the universe, I'll probably be back to reality, getting bullied again come morning."

His words make my heart squeeze. Diego puts up a goofy, irreverent front, even with me, but I'm also probably the only person who's ever allowed to see how vulnerable and insecure he really is—how much the years of vicious bullies, cruel slurs, and more than one broken heart have made him afraid to reveal too much of himself. All our lives, I've seen them mock him. I've heard them call him every ugly name in the book, attacking him for his race, his class, his sexuality, his shy and gentle nature. All our lives, I've been the one who's had his back when the bullies laid into him, and I've been the one to hold him when he's cried afterward. And these days, I think I'm the only one who really gets to see that beneath that layer of fear and insecurity, there is a kind, courageous, loyal, talented, creative, fucking _beautiful_ soul that the world should be a lot more grateful for. Without Diego, I wouldn't have made it as far as I have. Without his pure love, loneliness would have crushed me a long time ago.

...I hate his bullies. I am terrified that they will break him one day. And I swore a long time ago that I would never let that happen.

"I think sometimes you've got to force the universe to listen," I say. It's as close as I can get to voicing my true thoughts right now. _...And if you can't force it alone, Diego, I'll help. Always. You are my brother. You were my family when no one else would be..._

He laughs. "And you say I'm the ridiculous one."

"You are." My retort earns me a pillow in my face. Probably well-deserved. But I still grab a pillow to retaliate. As I do, I hear the soft sound of something small falling behind the bed. I pause and turn to see what it is. I bend over the side of the bed and pick up a folded piece of paper.

"...Was that under the pillow?"

The paper is yellowed with age, and the edges are worn. I unfold it carefully and find a note written in elegant, looping script:

I must see you one last time before tomorrow. Meet me at our spot in Neptune Cove. Midnight.

"Sealed with a kiss," I say, pointing to the lipstick print beneath the writing.

"Intriguing. Sounds like a steamy rendezvous. Neptune Cove's on the other side of the island. It's supposed to be real secluded and romantic. ...Hey, could that be where everyone went?"

"Wouldn't be much of a steamy rendezvous with an entire hotel's worth of guests watching. Besides, this letter looks like it's years old."

"...But it was just sitting there under your pillow. ...This room doesn't look like it's been empty for years."

"Maybe it belongs to one of the housekeeping staff? A memento from a grandparent or something that got dropped."

Diego opens his mouth to respond, but he's interrupted by more knocking at the door. I get up and open the door.

"What up, what up, what uuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuup!" Craig bellows, striding into the room. Followed by most of my classmates carrying bottles. "Wooooooah, sweet digs, Alodia!"

"We're heading to the pool for a rage," Raj announces. "That's right! It's a Raj Rage!"

"...I thought we were all going to sleep."

"We've got all the time in the world to sleep," Zahra scoffs.

"Shots up!" Raj crows.

Diego nudges me and points out the window. I look down and see the rest of our classmates out by the pool, stringing up party lights. He grins at me.

" _Hell_ yes. I was so hoping this would happen."

"I don't know. It's pretty late..."

"Come on, Allie. We promised we would make the most of this trip. Every moment's a chance to find love, find a new adventure...maybe even find yourself."

I can't help grinning. Affectionately mussing his hair feels like satisfying an itch. "All right, but only because you're too damn charming when you get philosophical."

"All riiiiiiiight!" Raj yells, and starts chanting, "Alodia! Alodia!"

Craig picks up the chant. "Alodia! Alodia!"

Zahra rolls her eyes. "Fine...Alodia! Alodia!"

"Enough!" I laugh. "My name doesn't exactly make for a graceful chant!"

"It's a very graceful name, though," Sean remarks, smiling at me.

"All right, stud," Diego laughs, moving to usher everyone out, "save the flirting for when she's gotten into a bathing suit. And on that note, we should give her some privacy so she can do that."

I swap my shorts and tank top for my black bikini with the neon firework print. Not my most elegant, but one of the sexiest I own. I run a comb through my honey-blonde hair, debate for a moment whether to pull it back, and decide against it. I head down to the pool, where Grace and Quinn are nearly finished stringing up the party lights all around the pool area. Like my bathroom, the pool is decorated all in stone. It even has a waterfall at the deep end. Upbeat pop music floats out from the speakers, loud enough to get in the blood without drowning out conversation.

"Oh, look who's come to join us!" Grace waves to me. I head over, admiring the job they've done with the lights.

"Love what you've done with the place. Where did you find the lights?"

"In the supply shed by the towels," Quinn says. "And Grace rewired the circuits to make the lights sync with the music!"

"Not bad. Not bad at all."

Behind the poolside bar, Jake is shaking up cocktails. He slides a bloody mary over to Diego and gets started on the next one.

"How'd they rope you into tending bar?" Diego asks after taking a sip. "You lose a bet?"

"Ha! As if I've ever lost a bet! You should have seen the kind of drinks these maniacs were pouring." He jerks his head at Craig. "Drax over here just filled his to the brim with cinnamon whiskey."

"What? I call it the Aggro-Craig. It's my go-to."

Jake finishes the cocktail he's mixing and slides it to Craig. "Try that."

Craig eyes it suspiciously for a moment before taking a swig. His eyes go wide. "Wha...Woah! That just blew my mind!"

"It's called a Sazerac. Consider yourself enlightened."

I put my elbows on the bar. "Can I get something?"

"I'm gonna be pouring drinks all night, aren't I? Okay, Princess, what's your poison?"

"Here's a challenge for you. Make a new drink inspired by me."

He smiles thoughtfully. "Inspired by you, huh? Hmm..." He gives me a long, searching look. "Okay, I think I've got something."

He turns around and gets to mixing, preparing it under the bar so I can't see what he's adding. He brings up a martini glass filled with a multicolored liquid, garnished with sugar on the rim and a slice of orange. I take a sip and smack my lips.

"Huh. That's all over the place. Salty and sweet, tangy and bitter, dry and fruity..."

"Yeah. It doesn't know what it wants to be just yet. But I think it has the potential to be anything."

In spite of myself, I feel myself blush. "That's...surprisingly thoughtful."

"You had to qualify that with 'surprisingly,' huh?" he teases. "I can't be 'typically' thoughtful?"

"Nope. Now it's your turn."

"My turn?"

"Other side of the bar, Top Gun. I'm making you a drink now."

"Ah, hell. I have a bad feeling about this."

But he comes around the bar and takes my seat. I slip behind the bar and salt a martini glass. I grin at Jake as I mix a bit of this and that and top the concoction off with an olive. I slide it over to him. He picks up the glass and looks at the cloudy mixture inside.

"...Looks okay." He takes a sip and coughs. "Gah! Looks good, but wow, is that _bitter_. That's a drink that has people making very bad decisions."

"Exactly. Why do you think I call it the Jake?"

He grabs the bar towel and flicks it at me. "Oh, you think you're funny, do you? That's it! You're cut off! Get out of here!"

I laugh and scoop up my drink, wandering over to the lounge chairs where Diego has made himself comfortable. He passes me a skewer of grilled shrimp and vegetables.

"You've got to try one of these. Raj made them."

I slip a mushroom off the end and pop it into my mouth. I squish it between my molars, and tangy juice floods my mouth, blending with the perfect mix of spices that coats its surface. "Oh, my GOD that is amazing!"

"I know, right? Next Memorial Day, let's get Raj to cook the burgers."

"Oh, come on! That was weeks ago! Am I ever going to live that down?"

He grins. "Sure you will. When I stop finding bits of charred burger meat on my dental floss."

I point the skewer at him like a sword. "En guarde! You'll pay for such slander, knave!"

"Hey! Who's up for Marco Polo?" Sean is in the water with his arms propped on the edge of the pool.

Diego points at me. "She is! She is! Seriously, make her play before she skewers me!"

"Well, Alodia? You in?"

"...I'm in." I put down my skewer. "Diego, you're spared for now."

"You'll never hurt me. You love me too much."

I stick out my tongue at him and slip into shallow end of the pool beside Sean. The water temperature is perfect, and I take a moment to savor it as it laps at my belly.

"Fair warning, I'm basically considered the Sean Gayle of Marco Polo."

"That's high praise," Sean concedes. "But don't get cocky. I could win this game with my _eyes closed!"_ He mimes a rimshot and strikes an exaggerated pose, waiting for my reaction. I can't help it. I laugh.

"You're lucky you're cute. That's the only reason you get away with bad jokes like that."

"I made you laugh," he says triumphantly. "That's all I wanted to hear."

"Well, Mister Smooth, you can be 'it' then. Let's see if you've got the moves to back up your mouth."

He obligingly closes his eyes. The rest of us swim around him, evading his outstretched hands. A few "Marco! Polo!" calls and responses lead him in my direction. He dives at me. I lunge right, but he's too quick for me. He slips under the water and wraps his arms around my waist, eliciting a shriek. He brings his head back above the water.

"Gotcha!"

"You got lucky!" I protest.

"Is that so? Think you can catch me?"

"It is _so_ on!"

I swim to the middle of the pool and close my eyes. "Marco!"

"Polo!" comes the chorus of answering voices. I focus on Sean's smooth baritone, coming from my right.

"Marco!"

"Polo!" His voice comes from behind me this time. I turn towards it.

"Marco!"

"Polo!"

There is movement right in front of me. I lunge. My hands slide over Sean's broad chest, slick from the water.

"Ha! Got you!"

He laughs. "All right, all right, you win!"

"Thought you were supposed to be this elusive star quarterback, but I tackled you so easy!"

"Guess you just know how to read me," he says, giving a smile that makes my knees feel weak. Out of the corner of my eye, I notice Michelle glaring at us from a poolside lounge chair.

"...Michelle doesn't look too happy. What's the deal with you two, anyway?"

"We're..." he trails off, closing his eyes. He is silent for a long time.

"...You...don't have to tell me."

"Look, don't get me wrong. Michelle's great. She's a lot nicer than she comes off. But..." He opens his eyes. "Alodia, have you ever been with someone who's dating an expectation of you, instead of the real thing?"

I think back to a few lovers I left behind at Hartfeld. "...Yeah...I think I know what you mean..."

"It's not her fault. I think she was just raised to care about status. And that means dating the quarterback. Whoever he is."

"She's lucky he turned out to be a great guy like you. Seriously, the quarterback at my high school in California was an asshole."

He chuckles. "...Still...I need something different in my life. I don't want to be a symbol. I want to be a person. That's why I wanted to go on this trip. I didn't realize she'd be picked too. But I'm not going to let that stop me from being the real me for a week...from making _real_ connections with people."

"...How's that going so far?"

He reaches an arm around to scratch the back of his head and beams at me. It's not the TV-ready grin I've seen him flash before. ...This is a shy, genuine sort of smile. This smile does a lot more than make my knees weak.

"Promising," he says softly. "I'll keep you posted."

I try to swallow, but my mouth has gone totally dry. "...Promising."

"...You all right? Your eyes just went really wide all of the sudden."

I put on a winning smile of my own. "I'm _great."_

"Hey, Allie!" Diego calls from the bar. "Come here a sec, will ya?"

"Gotta run, Sean. See ya later?"

"Absolutely."

I swim over to the side of the pool and hoist myself out. Diego passes me a towel.

"What's up?"

"Look who's kinda sorta shown up." He directs his gaze to a spot up and over my shoulder. I turn to look at see Estela sitting on a cliff side overlooking the party. She catches my gaze and holds it for a moment, but this time she's the one who looks away.

"...I'm...gonna go talk to her."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah. I wanna know what she's about."

"Good luck."

I slip on my clothes and flipflops and exit the pool area through the gate. I head towards the beach, passing the supply shed and shelves of towels. Back here, the overhead lights flicker, leaving wide pools of darkness. Something else catches my eye. Not only are there towels on the shelves, but there are also at least two dozen woven blankets. Probably for picnics and the like. I grab one and drape it over my shoulders before heading up the path towards the cliff where Estela is sitting with her legs dangling over the edge. She turns sharply as I approach.

"Who's there?" she growls.

"Woah! Hey! It's just me."

"What do you want?"

"Just thought you might like a little company." I sigh. This was probably a bad idea. "Sorry to have bothered you." I turn to leave.

"...Wait. ...Stay..."

I turn back. Her long hair obscures her face, but I think I can see her eyes shimmering. I shrug and come to sit beside her. For a moment, we sit in silence, watching the sea roll against the rocks below. I take the blanket off my shoulders.

"I brought you a blanket...if you're cold." I hold it out to her, but she recoils, eyeing it suspiciously.

"...Why?"

"...I don't know...to be nice?"

She accepts the blanket and wraps it around her shoulders. "...Thank you." She turns her gaze skyward. I lean back, propping myself up on my elbows to gaze with her. The stars seem to go on forever here.

"...Where I am from," she says after a moment, "people don't do things for you without expecting something in return."

"...Maybe people just want to be liked in return."

"Isn't that pathetic? How lonely we all are? But at least _you're_ honest about it..."

We sit together in silence for a moment, gazing up at the infinite ceiling of stars. The air is balmy, but a cool breeze blows in from the sea. Cool enough that it makes me shiver.

"...You're cold, too." She scoots closer and drapes half the blanket over my shoulders. I nestle close to her.

"That was nice of you."

She smiles in a manner that can only be described as cautious. Two lights that might be shooting stars streak across the sky.

"...Beautiful sky tonight," I remark. Estela abruptly abandons her place under the blanket, standing sharply.

"I have to go."

"What? Why? What's wrong?"

"...Look, Alodia. People in my life usually end up being hurt. And I don't mean their feelings."

"Estela..."

"You seem like a good person. I don't want that to happen to you." She walks off without another word, disappearing into the darkness.

I am not sure how long I sit there in stunned silence before getting up and wandering back towards the pool. I don't see Estela at the party when I get back. I have no idea where she could have gone.

"Woo! Let's do this!" Craig's bellowing snaps me back to the present. I look up to find him perched at the edge of the nearby gazebo, poised to jump into the pool.

"Craig!" Aleister cries. "That is clearly against pool regulations!"

"Oh, yeah? I don't see anything that says, 'No Badasses Allowed'!"

He takes a flying leap and tucks into a cannonball, slamming into the pool. A tsunami explodes from the spot and soaks everyone standing poolside.

Diego spits out a mouthful of water. "Blah! Pool water!"

I immediately dissolve into helpless giggles. Craig pops his head above the water, whooping triumphantly. That only makes me giggle harder. I double over, clutching my sides.

"I...I'll go get everyone some towels," I say when I can breathe again.

I go back to the supply shed, stepping carefully in the half-light. I drape one towel after another over my arm, carefully counting out enough for everyone.

Something rustles nearby me. I pause and turn, peering past the fence into the dark rainforest. The bright moonlight can't penetrate the thick canopy. I don't see anything right away. But the rustling comes again. I step a little closer. And then again. I sense movement. A ripple of muscle under flesh and fur, a sinewy shadow...and a pair of golden eyes piercing the darkness.

I scream, staggering backwards. My foot catches something and I tumble hard onto the sand, landing on my back. I hear the sound of rushing feet, and voices calling my name.

"Alodia!" Sean kneels beside me, helping me sit up. "Are you okay?"

Diego is at my other side, his hand on my shoulder. "What happened?"

I can't answer right away. I point a shaking finger at the rainforest past the fence.

"Did you see something?" Quinn asks.

Jake steps a little closer to the fence. "...What was it?"

I am silent a moment. ...Whatever it was, it's not there anymore. The gleaming pair of eyes have vanished.

"I...I have no idea..."


	3. The Shelter

_Darkness enfolds me, cold, quiet, and still. Then it stirs, creeping towards me. Powerful, rippling muscles. Glowing golden eyes..._

I awake with a gasp beneath a leafy canopy in a four-poster bed. Sweat soaks the soft sheets and blanket. I flop back on the pillow, willing my heart to slow.

"What the hell was that thing?" I murmur aloud. It takes me a few moments to stop trembling. But once I do, I start to feel the effects of the night before creeping up on me, and I groan. I knocked back a couple more cocktails after coming back up from the beach, mostly to calm myself down. The throbbing pain behind my eyes tells me that was a very poor idea. Not to mention the effects of the late night in general. It occurs to me to wonder what time it is. I fumble for my phone on the nightstand beside me.

9:27am. And still no cell service. I check for a wi-fi signal, but there is none to be found. Not even a secured signal. I sigh and put the phone down. Might as well get up, I guess. I push back the covers, stumbling into the bathroom.

I turn on the shower and gulp some water from the sink while I wait for the stream to get warm. It doesn't take long, and I strip and step under the soothing water. The strong pressure feels like a gentle massage. The shower is stocked with exotic floral body washes and shampoos. I savor the fragrance as I scrub the sweat from my body and rinse the chlorine from my hair. I should have done that last night. Blonde hair and pool water usually don't mix. But so far my hair hasn't turned green. Sooner than I want to, I turn off the water and step out onto the mossy green bathmat. I gulp more sink water. I make the bed—because I haven't seen the housekeeping staff anywhere, either—pull on some clothes, and hang my towel to dry.

By the time I've finished brushing my teeth, the headache is fading, and my stomach is starting to growl. I take a few more gulps of water, tuck my room key into my pocket and wander down to the hotel restaurant.

I'm greeted by a chaotic scene, and a cacophony of smells from the buffet table.

"Uh, Raj," Sean says, "when you said you were going to cook breakfast, I figured, you know, pancakes and bacon. Not...what is this, again?"

"The Raj Hangover Special 9000! A perfect scramble of eggs, potatoes, oysters, and bananas, topped off with pickle juice. Trust me, dudes, it'll cure your hangovers before you can say 'this tastes gross and weird.' Just try it."

"...This tastes gross and weird," Jake mutters.

Zahra grimaces. "I do not want this in this place, I do not want this in my face."

"Y'all are missing out," Craig declares, shoveling in another mouthful. "This shizz is delicious!"

"I once saw you eat a rock," Michelle says flatly.

"That was a dare, and I won ten bucks!"

As they notice my entrance, my classmates go quiet.

"Well, well, well," Jake drawls. "If it isn't the Girl Who Cried Monster."

"Seriously, Alodia," Raj laughs. "You shut down the party faster than the cops back home."

" _That's_ what you care about?" Estella sneers.

I smile sheepishly. "Sorry about that. I know I kinda freaked everyone out last night."

"Pfft. Didn't freak me out," Craig insists. "Nothing freaks Craig out!"

"Craig, let Alodia talk," Sean chides.

"...That's pretty much it. I promise I'll try not to ruin anymore parties."

"Good!" Raj says. "Because tonight, we're running it baaaaaack!"

Everyone laughs. I join in, but I stop when I notice Estela looking at me with disappointment.

"Hey, stranger." Diego sidles up to me, holding a plate piled high with Raj's sizzling hangover cure. "You okay?"

"Yeah. I'm fine. It was just...a rough night."

"Care for some breakfast?"

I eye the plate in his hands warily. The concoction looks like pureed scrambled eggs and smells like salted fish. "...I don't know if I should."

"It's actually not bad." He grins as my stomach growls audibly. "And face it, you need to eat something. Let's get you a plate."

I relent, and move to the buffet table where I fill a plate with pale yellow salty-fish-scented goop. I fill a glass with orange juice.

"So, uh...I hate to give you a middle school flashback, but what table should we sit at?"

I look around for two empty seats. At one table, Michelle asks Raj and Craig where the resort gym is. At another, Aleister, Grace, and Zahra are discussing something Grace found at the beach. I drift over to the first table. I know Michelle hates me, but I like Raj, and I don't have anything against Craig. Besides, I can probably follow their conversation better.

"Hey, guys. I heard you talking about the gym? I'd totally be down to hit that up."

Michelle scoffs. "Oh, sweetie, did you think I was talking to you? I'm going to the gym because I want to work out, not watch you have another meltdown."

"Hey!" Diego says. "At the peak of her gymnastics career, Allie was in the gym about five hours a day!"

"Slight exaggeration. And I hardly had a career." But I flash him a grateful smile.

"Come on, Michelle," Raj chimes in. "Go easy on Alodia. We're all stuck on this island together, we might as well get along."

"Pfft. Says you. I don't get along with anyone I don't want to."

"Craig, dude, you don't get along with anyone, _period._ "

"He's got you there," Michelle says.

I cover a chuckle by stuffing a forkful of egg goo into my mouth. ...It's like eating a pile of mushy salt with fish, banana, and egg aftertaste. If only I weren't so hungry. I gulp the rest of it before I can taste too much.

"Hey, you got that down pretty quick," Raj remarks. "Did you like it?"

"...I'm going to be tasting that in my burps all day."

"Absolutely!"

At that moment, the door swings open, and Lila enters, looking bright-eyed and flawless.

"Good morning, everyone! I hope you're all enjoying your lovely breakfast in our five-star restaurant. But I might've found out what happened to all the guests." She pauses to let us react, but we're all waiting for her to continue.

"...Well?" Jake prompts. "Spit it out, Dimples."

"Well, I went into the staff office to look for information. One of the computers in there, the one used for island-wide broadcasts, was still running. It turns out exactly two days ago, at 3:45 PM, someone used the emergency broadcast system to trigger a full evacuation of the hotel."

"An evacuation?"

"It's a standard procedure at all Rourke International resorts. In the event of a natural disaster, the guests vacate the premises and head to a secure shelter."

"A natural disaster?" I snicker. "You mean like Raj's cooking?"

Craig laughs. "Ha! Buuuuuuuurn!"

Raj presses his fist to his chest. "Ouch, Alodia. Major ouch."

Lila blinks. "Yes. Well...questionable cooking aside, the evacuation procedures here were designed specifically to handle only certain cases. A hurricane, a viral outbreak, or Mount Atropo finally erupting."

"Yeah, well, I don't see any hurricanes, virus, or lava flows," Jake says skeptically.

"So, why trigger the evacuation procedure?" Sean asks.

"False alarm, maybe," Quinn suggests. "But in that case, why hasn't anyone come back?"

"Perhaps everyone is still at the shelter," Estela says thoughtfully. "Lila, where is it?"

"I...don't entirely know. I've never actually been there. But the signs on the trail say we'll find it if we hike north for a few miles."

"I'm in," Jake says.

Lila blinks again. "I'm sorry?"

"You're going to go look for it, right? Well, I'm coming with you. The rest of these kids are having fun playing _Home Alone 2: Island Boogaloo,_ but I was already supposed to be in Cancun. I'm losing cash every second I waste here."

"I will come as well," Aleister says. "I...I'd like to get the lay of the land around here."

"I want to go too!" Quinn chimes in. "I'd love to help out and see some of the sights."

"How about you, Princess? You coming?"

I start a little. "...Me?" Involuntarily, I think of the thing I saw in the shadows last night. "Well...I..."

Jake waves a hand. "Hey, don't worry about it. If you're scared, you're scared. Just stay back here with the rest of the Goof Troop."

"Wait! I'm coming, too."

"You are?" Diego raises an eyebrow at me. "Why?"

I shrug. "I want to see the island. This hotel is great, but there's so much more to see. I want to see the jungles and the ruins and the waterfalls."

He smirks. "And the creepy bomb shelter that is almost certainly full of zombies?"

"Exactly!"

"Fine, fine. I'll go with you. But only so I can say 'I told you so' when something horrible attacks us."

I grin and give him a thumbs up. "That's the spirit!"

"All right, then!" Lila claps her hands. "Let's head out!"

A short time later, four of us follow Lila down a winding path through the rainforest. Jake and Aleister lag behind. Quinn, looking angelic in a white blouse with a white bandana tied like a babushka over her copper hair, skips ahead a little ways to marvel at the flowers on the trees and bushes. The flowers glow with a soft, colorful light. When I first saw them, I thought they were lightbulbs, something draped over the foliage like Christmas lights. But the glow is coming from inside the petals themselves.

"Unbelievable," Quinn breathes. "These colors, these textures...they're like something out of a dream."

"I've never seen anything like it," I agree.

"Beautiful, right?" Lila says. "Due to its geographic isolation, La Huerta has one of the most unique ecosystems on the planet, boasting flora and fauna not found anywhere else."

"Sure thing, Minnie Mouse," Jake grumbles. "Keep spewing that Rourke International propaganda. I ain't buying it."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Aleister snaps.

"I'm just saying. All the brochures go on about how this place is some sorta Disney paradise. But drink in the right dive bars, and you'll start to hear rumors about what really goes on here. Criminal plots, illegal experiments, folks going missing...all kinds of crazy."

Quinn wrinkles her nose. "Conspiracy theories? Really?"

"Laugh it up, Pippi Longstocking. While you were busy tweeting about your pumpkin spice latte, I was flying covert missions over Kandahar. Once you've peeked behind that curtain...well, let's just say there's some things out there that would blow your mind. The pretty purple flowers you're ooh-ing and ahh-ing about? They might just be sizzling with radiation."

"That is preposterous!" Aleister cries.

"What do you think, Princess? You trust this place?" I hesitate a moment, eyeing the flowers. Then I back away. Jake nods approvingly. "Knew I could count on you."

Aleister rolls his eyes. "Tell me you don't believe his conspiracy theory prattle."

"I don't know what I believe, but I say better safe than sorry. Unique ecosystem or not, flowers should not glow like that."

"Well, I still think they're beautiful," Quinn says with finality. "And I'm not going to let some conspiracy theory keep me from appreciating that."

She plucks a flower and puts it to her nose, inhaling deeply. ...Oh, my God, she is adorable. Diego elbows me lightly.

"What's with that goofy smile?" he whispers.

"Oh, shut up, Diego," I hiss back, feeling myself blush.

Ahead of us, Lila stops suddenly and looks around in confusion. "...This...doesn't make any sense."

"What?"

"Well, the signpost said the shelter should be right here..."

"Oh, great!" Aleister groans. "Even the tour guide's lost. What do they pay you for, again?"

"Tactical scouting 101 kids," Jake says. "Get to high ground. See that rocky cliff over there? I'm checking it out."

"Oh!" Quinn exclaims. "Do you hear that? Sounds like a waterfall nearby. The shelter might be near that."

"Or you just want to go check out the waterfall," Diego quips.

"Or that," she agrees sweetly.

"I really think we should stick to the trail," Lila says. "The shelter might be further ahead."

"We could split up," I suggest. "Cover a little more ground."

"I'll stick to the trail with Lila," Diego says.

Aleister crosses his arms stubbornly. "Well, I am staying right here. I see no reason to traipse around on some fool's errand."

"Well, y'all know where I'm headed," Jake says. He looks at me. "You wanna keep me some company, Princess?"

"Uh...yeah. Sure."

"Stay within shouting distance!" Lila calls as we split off.

Jake and I head off through the undergrowth towards the hilltop. Jake moves easily through the dense tangle of leaves and branches. He deftly hops a log and slides under a low-hanging branch.

"Impressive. You do this a lot?"

"Get stranded on mysterious islands with a group of plucky college kids? Gotta say, it's a first."

"I meant, go hiking, walk through jungles, that kind of thing. You seem pretty confident in the outdoors."

"I grew up in a Louisiana town so rural it wasn't even on the map. When it comes down to it, the swamp and the jungle ain't so different."

"Probably not as many gators out here though."

"Less gators, more jaguars. I'll call it even. How about you, Princess? This your kinda scene?"

"Actually, yeah. I mean, I admit I grew up in the SoCal suburbs, but I love the outdoors. The blue sky overhead...the fresh air...that soft sea breeze... I should probably be more freaked out. Especially after that...whatever...I saw last night. Being out here, like this, I don't know. I can't help but feel happy."

Jake raises an eyebrow at me. "That why you came along with me? You felt like a nature hike?"

"Well, you invited me. And...I guess I felt safer following you than 're confident. You're capable. And you seem to know what you're doing here more than she does. Or any of us for that matter." I pause. "...Come to think of it, why would you ask me to come along?"

He shrugs. "Because I can already tell you're going to be the horse to back here."

"I...what?"

"You're smart. Maybe not book smart. At least, not as much as Draco Malfoy back there, or...what's her name with the glasses?"

"Grace."

"Right. Grace. But you've got a good head on your shoulders. You're also braver than either Grace or Malfoy, and when it comes down to it, I would bet money you're the one everyone's going to look to when things go sideways."

"You say that like you're expecting them to go sideways."

"I am, Princess. I am."

I can't tell if he means that, or if he's just being facetious "...Are you ever going to call me by my real name?"

"When you've earned it."

"I think you've forgotten it."

"Have not. I saw all your boarding passes in Costa Rica. ...It's Alodia Chandler, right? Or do you prefer Allie?"

"Alodia. Diego's the only one who gets to call me Allie. That's a right _you_ have to earn."

"...Are you and he...?"

"Me and Diego? Please. I've known him since we were in diapers. He's practically my brother. Besides..." I discreetly point towards my pubis. "I'm missing a piece he finds essential. ...Best friend I've ever had, though."

"Thought so. Got that vibe from him."

"Is it that obvious? I know he's not Sean Gayle, but he's not camp, either."

"He's not lisping or limp-wristing. It's pretty subtle. And if you've known him all your lives it's probably harder for you to pick up on since it's all just your friend to you." He pauses. "And I'd be surprised if Sean Gayle hasn't kissed at least a couple boys in his time."

"You think he's bi?"

"I think he's attracted to personality more than what's between a person's legs. Call that what you will."

"For a lone wolf type, you seem pretty confident in your ability to read people. Or maybe it's just your amazing gaydar."

"Well, it is damn amazing. Of course, it's wasted on you."

"What do you mean?"

He grins. "Come on. You're not exactly subtle. If we put Quinn and Sean in front of you and had them bend over, you wouldn't know which ass to stare at."

It takes a moment for his words to sink in. Then I laugh. "You're a brat, Top Gun! What about you, then? What's your pleasure?"

His smile slips. He looks away. "...Been a long time since I've shared my bed with anyone, man or woman." He turns back to me with a wry grin. "Hard to get frisky in a hammock. ...But it don't much matter to me what a person's got in their pants. It's what's in their head that I'm picky about."

I am distracted from responding when we break through the branches and arrive at the foot of a sharp, jagged cliff face.

"If we can just get up that, we'll have a clear view," he says. "How's your rock climbing?"

"Great. I mean...pretty good. Average?" I shrug apologetically. "I'm a gymnast, but I've really only done rock-climbing at the Y. But I never broke anything."

"Good enough for me."

He crouches down and gives me a boost, hoisting me up to a low ledge. Together, we carefully ascend the cliff face, grabbing handholds and sticking our toes in cracks to stabilize ourselves. Before too long, Jake crests the top. I'm just a few inches behind him when the rock I'm holding onto breaks off in my hand. I cry out, grabbing at the ledge, and hook my fingers on the edge. Jake grabs my arms and helps me up.

"Nice moves, Princess. Looks like you learned from the stairs on the control tower."

"Still glad for the help."

We take a moment to catch our breath, looking out over the island.

"...I gotta hand it to this place," I say softly. "It never stops taking my breath away."

"That's the radiation."

I sigh. "You're a real glass-half-full kinda guy, aren't you?" I mutter.

"...I'm on an island owned by Rourke International. Don't trust that they haven't poisoned this place. In the military, I served near some of their mining operations. ...Massive machines that dwarfed skyscrapers. The kind that rob the earth blind and leave it barren."

"...I gotta admit I didn't take you for an environmentalist."

"I'm not. I just think you reap what you sow."

"So...you believe in karma?"

"Doesn't matter what I believe. In my life, karma's made it pretty clear that it believes in me." He pauses. "...Seriously, though...that is one hell of a sight..."

"No weird lights in the sky, either."

"For now."

"Oh, shut up."

"...Hey...what's this?"

Jake kneels and brushes at some dirt. I see something glinting in the sun. I kneel beside him. Embedded into the stone is a square-shaped metallic plate with what looks like the head of a wolf embossed on it.

"What is that?"

"I dunno." Jake frowns, staring at the plate. "There's no writing or anything. Looks like...some kinda wolf?"

"You think it's part of the resort? Like the corporation put it here?"

"Maybe...but why? If it's a warning that there are wolves in the area it's a pretty crap warning, given its location. And I don't know many species of wolves that live in the rainforest."

I slide my phone out of my back pocket and snap a quick picture of the plate. As I tuck my phone back into my pocket, something catches my eye.

"Jake, look! Down by that river over there...the gray building? Sure looks a lot like..."

"A shelter! Hot damn! Good eyes, Princess!"

"Couldn't have got here without you."

We smile at each other for a long, silent moment. Then Jake clears his throat.

"We, uh...should probably head back. Find the others and tell them where to go."

"Yeah. We should. Definitely."

Jake takes a step towards the edge, then looks back. "Gotta say...this was actually kind of fun. Maybe before I fly back, we can go on another climb together."

"Sure. I'd like that."

We regroup with the others and make our way to the shelter. The enormous concrete and cinder building is covered with creeping vines.

"Great job, Jake and Alodia!" Lila chirps. "You found it!"

"I wouldn't go popping the champagne just yet," Diego says. "Anyone else getting some _28 Days Later_ vibes off this place?"

"It does look a little...dilapidated," Quinn agrees. "How old is this place?"

"It's no older than the resort," Lila says. "I will have to have a stern word with the caretakers!"

"Whole point of a shelter is keeping you safe inside, not looking good outside," Jake points out with a shrug. "Come on."

Lila pushes open the doors, revealing a long hallway that looks just as dilapidated as the outside. Vines snake along the floor, and broken fixtures overhead cough sparks.

"...Empty..."

Jake shudders. "On second thought, maybe Pop Culture Petey was right. This place gives me the creeps."

"I finally get a nickname, and it's 'Pop Culture Petey'?" Diego mutters indignantly. "Everyone else got a cooler one!"

"Not everyone. I'm 'Princess', remember?"

"Anyone else want to go back to the pretty jungle with the magic flowers?" Quinn asks in a small voice. "Anyone?"

Jake kneels and trails his fingertips on the ground. "There's a lot of muddy shoeprints around. They seem recent."

"You mean the guests _were_ here?"

"Well...someone was."

A skittering sound makes us all startle. Jake leaps to his feet.

"What was that?"

I look in the direction the sound seemed to come from. There is a gaping hole in the far wall where the concrete has crumbled. Vines and glowing flowers cover the edges like a wreath. ... _Or dried blood on a wound,_ I think involuntarily.

I approach cautiously, the others gathering behind me. At the edge of the hole, I hesitate. Then I gather my courage and peer inside.

"...There's something in there."

"What do you see?" Diego asks.

Something shifts in the darkness. Two spots of reflected light glint out of the shadows. A pair of eyes.

"There's something _alive_ in there!"

"Certainly it's just a rat," Aleister says most _un_ certainly. "...Right?"

There's a strange clicking sound that comes from inside the hole, separate from the sound of claws scraping on stone that accompanies it.

"That's no rat," Jake murmurs.

"Allie, is that the... _thing_ you saw last night?"

"...It's..." I'm cut off by my own cry as the shape rushes towards me, its shadow huge on the wall, and pounces into the light. We all whirl towards it, and stop.

A creature about the size and shape of a fox, with violet eyes and ice-blue fur, sits on its haunches in front of us and cocks its head.

"Mrrlk?" it trills curiously.

"...What the...?"

"Oh...my...God!" Quinn squeals.

"What...is it?" Aleister asks.

"Uh, _literally_ the cutest thing I've ever seen!" Quinn answers, practically beaming.

"Okay, can we all officially agree this is not a real animal?" Jake says.

As if understanding, the fox-thing trills sadly, its tail and ears drooping. It backs away from us into a corner, trembling. Frost clings to the walls behind him.

"Huh...it looks scared."

"But what would it be scared of?" I ask. "Us?"

Any reply I might have gotten is cut off by a deep growl from directly behind me. My veins turn to ice. I turn slowly.

An enormous feliform beast is prowling towards us from the shadows, muscles rippling under skin and golden-brown fur. Massive cuspids, each at least the length of my hand from fingertips to wrist, descend from its upper jaw. My heart drops into my stomach. I know in an instant that I'm looking at the creature I saw last night.

"That!" Aleister cries. " _That!_ It's scared of that!"

"You think?!" Lila shrieks.

The fox creature scurries behind me, curling against my ankles.

"Jake!" I cry. "What do we do?!"

Jake looks at me. For the first time, he looks scared. He grabs my hand and holds it tight.

"Don't. Move."


	4. Cut and Run

The great cat slinks towards us on massive paws, growling deep in its throat. We press close together, trying to look big and intimidating, even as we back away in terror.

"Niiiice kitty," Jake murmurs under his breath. "Niiiice kitty..."

"This cannot be happening," Aleister whispers. "It makes no logical sense!"

"You wanna tell _it_ that?" Diego retorts.

Clearly, the cat-beast doesn't give a crap about logic, because its still advancing on us. It turns its golden eyes on me and pauses. For a moment, I could swear it remembers me from last night. It moves closer to me, baring its teeth in a snarl. No, wait. It's moving closer to Quinn. She's beside me, on the edge of the group huddle. Small and easy to pick off if it's looking for a quick meal. It raises a paw, claws unsheathed.

"Quinn!" I push in front of her and back her into the corner, shielding her as the massive paw archs downward. Two lines of fiery pain fall like lashes of a whip across my ribs. I cry out, staggering back into Quinn's arms.

"Alodia!" Her voice is frantic. I bring a hand up to clutch the wounds.

"I'm okay," I say tightly. "It's not deep." I actually have no idea if that's true, but I can't let anyone think otherwise while the beast is still circling us. It has fallen back slightly, but it hasn't given up by a long shot.

"It's blocking the exit!" Lila says. "We have to get around it!"

"Yeah, good luck with that. No way we're getting past it."

"There's another door over there!" Diego shouts, pointing. "Look!" I follow his finger to a massive blast door on the far side of the shelter, leading to a dimly lit hallway.

"I say we run for it while we can!" Aleister says. "Seal ourselves inside!"

"You really think we can outrun this thing?" Jake cries.

"I really think we don't have a choice!"

The beast is approaching again, ready for another strike. Five-hundred pounds of pure muscle against four college students, a pilot, and a tour guide. I back against the wall, nearly knocking over a fire extinguisher.

"Guys, it's now or never!" Quinn says. And then it hits me like lightning. I grab the fire extinguisher off the wall, pull the pin, and fire it at the beast. The chemicals come out in a cold white blast that hits the creature in the face. It lets out a blood-curdling yowl and stumbles backwards, swiping at its face with its paws.

"Run!" I scream, barreling towards the blast door. The others don't need any more prompting. The fox-thing scampers ahead, apparently aware of where we're headed.

"Quick thinking, Princess."

I dare to look back. The massive cat is still pawing its face and sneezing, shaking its head. But then it seems to recover enough to look back in our direction.

"Hurry! We're almost there!" We dart into the hallway behind the blast doors and start to close them, but Lila is a few paces behind. "Lila, come on!"

Lila picks up speed just as the beast gives chase. My heart hammers against my ribcage. Adreneline surges through my veins. Lila clears the blast doors, and they close behind her. On the other side of the steel, we hear the beast angrily slamming itself into the doors, but they hold fast. Its yowls and snarls slowly die down.

"...Thanks, Alodia," Lila says. "If you hadn't blinded it, that thing would've had me for sure."

"Yeah, way not to get us all shish-kebab'd on those teeth," Jake says. He reaches out to hug me, but after a moment's hesitation, he ruffles my hair instead. "Nice work."

I smile weakly. Suddenly, the effort of drawing breath is almost too much. The adreneline is fading, and the pain of the claw wounds on my ribs comes back in a white-hot rush. I moan, sinking against the wall.

"Allie!" Diego braces me, helping me to the floor. The fox-thing gently places his front paws on my thigh.

"Alodia, you're hurt..." Quinn kneels beside me. "We have to stop the bleeding." She pulls the bandana off her head and presses it against my wounds. I bite back a cry. She takes Diego's hand, guiding him to hold the bandana in place while she tears strips from her T-shirt to cover the gashes.

"That's not going to cover it," Jake says. "We'll need something to tie around it to hold any bandages in place."

"I have some duct tape in my fanny pack," Lila suggests.

"That...would work, actually. Short term, anyway." He pauses. "...Nope. Not gonna ask why you have that."

"Give it here," Quinn orders her.

I raise my arms and let her lift up my shirt to wrap my torso in duct tape. I grin weakly.

"This is going to be fun to take off."

Quinn smiles weakly back. "Thank you for protecting me back there. But...please don't risk yourself for me again. I'm...I'm not worth it."

I stare at her for a moment, not quite sure how to respond. Diego saves me from having to.

"Someone wanna tell me what the hell that thing was?!"

Aleister sighs. "Isn't it obvious? That was a _smilodon fatalis."_

"A what in the who now?"

"A saber-toothed tiger."

"Oh, yeah, _totally obvious!"_ Jake cries, throwing his hands up. "I must've forgotten my spear and loincloth in my cave, because obviously it's 10000 B.C.!"

"Sabertooths have been extinct forever," Quinn says, forehead wrinkled thoughtfully, "so that one was...cloned?"

Diego shakes his head in disbelief. "I'm sorry, did this vacation just turn into _Jurassic Park_?"

"Of course not," Aleister snaps. "Rourke International is in dozens of different industries, but cloning is not one of them. And furthermore, sabertooths would make this Pleistocene Park, not Jurassic. Congratulations, you're only off 140 million years."

"Jesus, Malfoy, who _cares?!"_

"...It kinda does matter what we're up against," I murmur. "If we don't take this seriously and think it through, we're dinner."

"Exactly," Aleister says. "The facts could make the difference between-"

"I saw it's teeth," Jake cuts in. "That's all the facts I need."

"Jake..."

He looks down at me. "Princess, look at what that thing did to you. Do you really care whether the those claws were Jurassic or Pleistocene?" When I don't answer, he nods. "Didn't think so. The good news is, I should have enough fuel to make it back to the mainland."

"The mainland?" Aleister balks. "What are you talking about?"

"You're leaving the island?" I ask incredulously.

"Come with me, or stick around and wait for rescue, I don't really care. ...Frankly, Princess, you _should_ come with me. You could probably use medical attention. But in any case, I'm not waiting around to be that tiger's dinner. Or _yours!"_

He glares down at the fox thing, who cocks his head and chirrups like a cat. "Murrl?"

"That's right, you can't play cute with me, bud. God knows what you are, and frankly, I don't intend to be here when we find out."

"Let's not overreact, Jake. We'll be perfectly safe as soon as we get back to the Celestial." Lila looks at me, Diego, Quinn, and Aleister. Quinn and Diego are still kneeling on either side of me. "You guys don't want to miss out on your entire vacation, do you?"

"Well...no," Diego admits, but he looks at me with concern. "...But Allie..."

"I'm really okay, Diego," I assure him. "They're not deep."

"You see? I'm positive everything will be back to normal as soon as-"

"As soon as everyone magically reappears? As soon as your staff can round up the prehistoric predators chasing after the guests?! I dunno what kinda circus you're running here, Dimples, but it ain't safe."

"And flying with you is?" Aleister sneers. "You nearly crashed in that weird storm on the way in! What if that happens again?"

"I'll take my chances."

"What about your money? You haven't been paid."

"Princess, I've spent enough time gambling to know when it's time to cut and run."

I sigh. "...I guess you're right. We should get outta here. This place is getting too crazy."

Jake's shoulders sag almost imperceptibly, as if releasing a sigh. He gives me a smile that looks a little relieved. "Knew you'd be smart about this."

"Alodia," Lila protests, "I'm sure everything will be fine once we get back to the Celestial."

"No, Lila, Jake's right. I was just clawed by a sabertooth tiger, and I'm not an idiot. This has probably ruined any hope of a relaxing vacation for me."

"I wanted to have an adventure," Diego remarks, "but maybe the truth is I'm not cut out for one."

"I know," Quinn agrees. "I had a vision of how this week would go, and this isn't it."

Aleister opens his mouth, then hesitates. After a moment, he sighs. "Very well. We may depart."

"Jake! I have a responsibility to my superiors-"

"Who? To Everett freakin' Rourke?"

I get carefully to my feet. "Rourke isn't here, Lila. He's not the one sticking his neck out as his paradise falls apart. It's you. This isn't your job anymore."

Lila whines a little, shifting uncomfortably. Then she meets my eyes. "...Okay."

"All right, the plan is to get out of here, grab the others from the resort, and head back to the airstrip."

"We'd better hope there's another exit," I remark, "because I don't trust that sabertooth to give up."

"There's gotta be one somewhere," Diego says. "This place can't be _that_ big. ...Right?"

"We'll find out, I guess."

"You good to walk, Allie?"

"Yeah, I'll make it. Come on."

We head down the hallway to where it ends, at the intersection of two corridors. The fox thing scampers beside us, keeping close to my heels.

"Is this thing just gonna keep following us?" Jake asks, eyeing it warily.

"I think he likes Alodia," Quinn cooes.

"Mmrm!" the fox trills.

We reach the end of the hall. Long, identical corridors split off to the left and right, ending in their own intersections.

Aleister groans. "Perfect. We're going to starve to death in an endless labyrinth."

"There's nothing to do but pick a direction and go with it," I snap. "I say left."

"Good enough for me," Diego says. We head left and reach another intersection.

"Right now?"

"Uh...sure." Again, we reach an intersection. Diego sighs with agitation. "I think this place is just trolling us now."

"These underground corridors might run across the entire island," Quinn points out. "Who knows where we'll come out?"

"Hey...what's this?" I put my hand on the wall, where someone has carved a small design into the wall. "It...looks like some sort of lizard...?"

"Let me see." Lila comes up to examine it, leaning slightly into the wall beside me. "It might just be some bored employee scratching in the-"

 _Shnk!_

Lila and I both yelp and leap back as the wall shudders.

"Hey! That section got pushed in a little bit!" Diego says. "Straight edges, too! It's deliberate!"

"It's the outline of a door!" Aleister exclaims. "There could be a passage through here!"

Jake pushes on the hidden door with one hand. No movement. He frowns and pushes with both hands, straining. He stops and shakes his head.

"No use. Gotta be another way to open it."

"There's a wheel valve on this pipe here," I point out. "Might open the door, but it's chained tight."

Jake examines the wheel and chain. "That chain looks sturdy. We've still got the fire extinguisher. Maybe this'll help."

He hands it to me. I consider for a moment, looking from it to the chain and back again. Then, I squeeze the handle, spraying the chain with freezing cold gas.

"Uh, Allie? What are you doing?"

"Physics. Or...chemistry? I don't know. Some kind of science."

"You are showing a bit of initiative," Aleister says approvingly. "CO2 fire extinguishers release gas at drastic sub-zero temperatures."

"Exactly. And if the chain gets brittle enough..." I swing the tank at the chain. It shatters, releasing the valve. "Success!"

"I admit, I am impressed," Aleister says. "I expected you to be more dimwitted."

"Thanks for the...compliment?"

Jake grabs the wheel valve and spins it. I hear the popping and clacking of gears grinding deep within the walls.

The hidden door slides aside, revealing a small, windowless room that can only be described as an office. Shelves are crammed with file folders. A single folding chair sits in front of a desk. On top of the desk is a computer attached to several moniters.

"That computer might have a way out for us," Lila suggests. "A file with schematics or something..."

I have already made a couple passes with the mouse to wake up the hibernating computer. The main moniter flickers to life. A dialogue box appears on a pale blue background:

 **Please Enter Password**

"The password is six letters..."

"Hey, what's this?" Diego bends over, picking up a neon pink sticky note from the dusty shadows beneath the desk. " 'Ram Scorpion Bull Lion'. What's that supposed to mean?"

"Maybe it's a password hint?" Quinn says uncertainly.

I consider for a moment. Then I shrug.

"Well, it's worth a shot." I carefully enter six letters:

 _ **C**_

The computer chimes. A loading circle appears on the screen, rotating sluggishly.

"Right!" Diego laughs. "Zodiac signs!"

"Aries, Scorpio, Taurus, Leo!" Quinn says. "Very clever, Alodia."

I flash her a grin. "You ain't seen nothing yet."

Diego frowns. "I wonder why whoever uses this office would need to leave himself a password hint..."

"Maybe there's more than one person who uses it. It's kinda tucked away in here, maybe they aren't too concerned with keeping the password secure since they figure the office is-"

I cut myself off as the screens all flicker to life, revealing grainy, grey-green security camera footage of a large room. Slowly, we all freeze as we realize what we're looking at.

"Oh, my God..." Diego whispers.

"That's the Celestial's lobby! Look, you can see Raj in the massage chair!"

"I guess..." Lila says uncertainly, "that this is so they can moniter to see if it's safe to return to the resort?"

"Yeah?" Jake growls, looking at the other screens, "is that why they have cameras in half the suites, too?"

I look around and realize he's right. The many moniters' split screens show hidden camera feeds from dozens of suites.

Diego shivers. "I get that some people like being watched, but this is just creepy."

"Okay, but maybe this is good." Jake reaches between two moniters and draws out a mounted microphone and headphones. "This probably means that we can call over to the resort somehow..."

"And tell them to meet us at the airstrip!" Quinn finishes.

"Alodia, you see if you can figure out a way to reach them," Jake says. "Everyone else, let's see if we can't find a map outta here."

I nod and slip on the headphones. For a moment, I just stare at the screen. ...Where exactly do I start here? Come on, Alodia. You're a millennial. Computers are your friends. You can figure this out.

I click around for a moment or two. Then, a distorted voice in my ears makes me jump.

"We can't..."

My eyes dart across the moniters, and zero in on the source. Sean, in one of the suites, with Michelle's arms draped around him.

"Says who?" Michelle purrs.

"What's this about, Michelle?" Sean sighs. "You wanted to talk, so talk."

I should look away. I can see my other classmates all over the resort. Zahra's rummaging around the restaurant, noshing on a giant pastry.

Craig is heading down the hallway, singing to himself, "Gonna get some bread, gonna put it in my head!"

On another screen, Estela is marching briskly down a different hall.

But my eyes are drawn back to Michelle and Sean. Michelle has draped herself against his chest, and is looking out the window at the ocean.

"Isn't this view just unbelievably romantic?"

"I thought you wanted to talk," Sean says irritably.

"Who said we had to talk with our clothes on?"

I feel my grip on the mouse tighten as she pushes him down onto the bed and straddles him. My other hand curls into a fist at my side.

"Michelle-"

"Sean, please. Just think about how different this vacation could be. Instead of this...weird fight, we could be the way things were a month ago. I thought maybe you could even propose to me here. I just want to know why you-"

"Because you cheated on me!"

Michelle goes still. Sean lifts her off him and stands up.

"Sean, that's not-"

"Not true? That's what you're gonna go with? You're gonna deny it to my face? Your sorority sisters told me every detail. Your closest friends. Are you gonna tell me they were lying about you?" Michelle does not respond. Her head drops slightly. "...That's what I thought."

Something in his words or his voice reawakens the fight in her. "That isn't even what this is about, is it," she growls. "No, you...you were looking for an excuse to dump me, weren't you? Just waiting for an easy out!"

"Michelle, I..."

"Oh...now I get it. It's so obvious. You'd rather be with Alodia, wouldn't you."

"Hang on now, that's not-"

"Not true?" Michelle says acidly. "That's what you're gonna go with? You're gonna deny it to my face?"

This time, Sean is the one who doesn't respond.

"...That's what I thought." Before he can recover, Michelle storms out, slamming the door behind her.

On another screen, Estela has reached the ballroom. She seems to be searching for something. I think she's muttering to herself, but I can't make out what she's saying. She stands up and pauses. Her eyes come to rest on something. She walks up to a painting mounted on the wall. From what I can tell, it's a sailboat on the ocean beneath a night sky. Estela stares at it for a moment. Then, she flicks out a pocket knife and slashes at the painting, tearing it away. She reaches behind it and takes out something I can't see. She slips the thing into her pocket.

"Estela? Estela, are you in the ballroom?" Grace's voice comes through my headphones. I see her on another screen, heading towards the ballroom. Estela slips behind one of the large doors, just as Grace enters. "Estela, I was just going to..." She trails off, looking around in confusion. Estela waits, frozen. Finally, Grace shrugs and heads back out. Estela waits another moment, and then slips out, down the hallway.

I look again to the screen that moniters the restaurant, where Zahra and Craig are about to run into each other. Zahra wanders behind the buffet tables to the back kitchen. She notices a strange tower-like object shrouded in cloth, sitting atop a card table. Tugging the cloth down, she reveals a towering tiramisu cake, at least seven feet tall and elegantly decorated.

"Daaaaaaaaaaaaaaamn..." she breathes. She flings aside the pastry and stares at the cake for a moment...then kicks out one of the table's legs. The cake topples over and splatters over the floor in a massive sugary explosion. Zahra laughs. "Awesome. Tiramisu sucks."

She turns her attention the the industrial freezer. She pauses a moment, then opens the door with obvious relish. She pulls out what looks like a five-gallon tub of ice cream. Grabbing a scoop, she pries off the lid and digs out a baseball-sized lump of ice cream. She starts to eat it straight off the scoop, sighing rapturously.

She suddenly stops. No doubt she can hear Craig's off-key song getting louder. She groans. "Oh, you gotta be-"

Craig moves through the restaurant straight to the kitchen. He stops when he sees Zahra standing there, ice cream tub hugged to her chest. They size each other up like two gunslingers in a spaghetti western.

"...Guess you found the ice-cream stash, too," Craig says at last, breaking the silence.

"...Guess I did."

Neither looks away. Zahra takes a long, slow lick from the ice-cream scoop.

"...I found it first, ya know."

"I know your brain might be stuck in fifth grade, but are you seriously trying to pull 'Finders Keepers' on me?"

"Just askin' for a little mutual respect, feel me? Honor among theives?"

Zahra holds up her middle finger. "Honor this."

"Look, Z. I don't like you, and you don't like me-"

"Wow. I didn't know you were capable of such subtle understatement-"

"-so why don't we just stay out of each other's way, deal?"

"Fine."

"Fine!"

They try to go around each other, but they both move in the same direction.

"Go left!" Zahra snaps.

"My left or your left?"

"Like you know the difference!" Zahra finally squeezes past, still clutching the tub of ice cream. Just before she leaves, she pauses. "Oh, and Craig? If you tell anyone about...you know...freshman year...I'll hack your phone and send your family those photos you saved there. You know, the ones with you and the whipped cream and nothing else?"

"Pfft. You can't do that."

Zahra just smiles knowingly and goes, leaving Craig bewildered.

I shake my head. Enough spying. I have a job to do here. I click around for a moment or two, clicking on a microphone icon, playing with the settings, until...

"Guys, I think I found it!" I activate the microphone and unplug the headphones so the others can hear.

"You found it? We can talk to them? Try it!"

In the hotel lobby, Raj is still snoozing in the low-humming massage chair. I lower my voice and moan into the microphone.

"Rrrrrrraaaaaaaaaaaaajjjjjjjj! This is the ghoooooooooost of semesters paaaaaaaaaaaaaaast!"

Raj snaps awake and rolls out of the massage chair, which carries on vibrating. Raj looks around frantically. "Oh, man, not this trip again!"

Peals of hysterical echo across the lobby. Zahra and Craig stumble into the camera's view, doubled over and clutching their sides.

"Yo, Alodia!" Craig calls. "Is that you on the speakers? That was hilarious!"

Zahra sinks down against one of the chairs, wiping tears of mirth from her eyes. "God, I just love humor at the expense of others."

"Wait, that's Alodia on the speakers?" Raj looks bafftled for a moment. Then he grins. "Okay, I'll admit it. That was pretty good."

"So, we found the shelter, but there's a problem."

I explain what happened, as quickly as I can without leaving out any important details. Even on the grainy screen, I can see their faces falling.

"...This is another prank, right?" Zahra asks. "Because this one is a lot less funny."

"It's all true," Jake confirms. "We're heading straight for the airship."

"You're leaving?!" Craig cries. "What the hell?! This is our vacation, man! We just got here! Naw, forget that!"

"Craig, I need you to trust me. Please. Get the others, and meet us at the airstrip."

"Trust you?! I don't know you! And you don't know me! Why are you trying to ruin everything?!"

Jake angrily grabs the microphone. "Listen, meathead, if you meet us at the airstrip, she'll show you the claw marks, and you can decide for yourself if a vacation is worth-"

"He's already stalked off, Jake," Raj says. "Don't worry, I'll talk to him. We'll be there soon."

Jake grunts in frustration. "Keep an eye out," he mutters. "That sabertooth is somewhere out there. We'll meet you at the plane as soon as we find a way out of here."

"...Yeah...about that..." Diego says.

"We've found absolutely nothing so far," Aleister says flatly. "And it will take hours to examine the rest of these files."

I sigh. "At this point, I don't think we could even find our way back to where we came in. There has to be something-"

"Alodia, look!" I look up, and see Quinn watching the blue fox-thing as he leaps up onto the desk, then deftly onto my shoulders. Then, after wiggling his little behind for a moment, he leaps gracefully up onto a high shelf with a loud, "Mrrmph!"

"...What the hell's he doing?"

"Maybe there's food up there?" Lila suggests.

The fox grabs the edge of a large binder between his teeth, and with a low growl, gives it a sharp tug. It topples out, hitting the floor with a splat and falling open.

"...Oh, my God!" Diego gasps. "It's a schematic of the tunnels!"

"The cute little thing found it!" Quinn cries delightedly. "That's our way out! See? We're here, and there's an exit right along this path!"

"Wait...does that mean this furball understands English?" Jake drops to one knee in front of the fox. "All that stuff I said before? I didn't mean any of it, okay?"

"Mrrmph!" the fox says.

"I think he meant, 'no hard feelings'," I say, unable to keep back a grin.

With the schematics in hand, we set off from the office, turning right and left through the hallways until we reach another set of blast doors.

"This should be the exit," Quinn says. "If we can get these doors open."

Jake tests them, pulling at the crack in the center. "I think they're unlocked. Someone give me a hand." I step up to tug at the other half of the door. They slide open with minimal resistance. "Sweet freedom, here we come-"

"...Uh...guys...?"

We stop, staring past the massive doors, into total darkness. My heart sinks. Ten paces into that tunnel, we won't be able to see our hands in front of our faces, much less the schematic map.

"This is absolutely absurd!" Aleister moans. His voice echos in the void. ... _absurd...absurd...absurd..._

"An echo...some kind of cave? Or just another hallway?"

"Jake, use your flashlight."

Jake feels around his belt and curse. "Dammit. Lost it. Must've fallen off when we ran from the tiger. We'll have to push forward without it."

"Yeeeeah," Diego says, "that's gonna be a hard pass. We have no idea what could be lurking in there, or if there's even really a way out. My _abuelita_ had an old saying. 'Where there be sabertooth tigers, there be brain-eating spiders'."

"I doubt your _abuelita_ ever said any such thing!" Aleister mutters.

"That's because you never met her," I say flatly.

"We don't have a choice," Jake says. "We sent the others out to the airstrip, and if we're not there to meet them, they're sitting ducks. We have to push forward."

He steps further into the darkness. I hestiate, glancing at the others. Jake turns back to us.

"Come on, now," he says firmly. "Everybody link up. Grab each other's hands so we don't lose each other in the dark."

"Jake..." I say, my voice sounding weak and breathy to my own ears. "I don't know about this..."

"...Do you trust me, Princess?"

He reaches out a hand. I bite my lip, looking into his face. His features are set and determined. His ice blue eyes are steely, but calm. There are no tremors in his hands. His voice is steady.

"...A little," I admit, realizing as I say it that it is true. I take his hand. He squeezes mine and smiles.

"...Good enough."

Quinn takes my other hand, and offers hers to Diego. Diego takes hold of Aleister, who reluctantly joins hands with Lila. And together, we step into the darkness.


	5. Grounded

We venture further into the tunnel, far enough that the light streaming through the blast doors dwindles away behind us. I can taste panic at the back of my throat, but I am determined to swallow it. I focus on breathing, in and out. I focus on planting one foot in front of the other, balancing on uneven ground. I focus on the hands I clutch in mine. Jake's strong, firm grip and calloused palms. Quinn's small, soft hand with long, graceful fingers.

"You still with us, Princess?"

"I'm fine," I reply with the slightest tremor in my voice. "Don't you worry about me. I can handle it."

"Who said I was worried?"

"I'm the one who's worried!" Diego grumbles. "This is the part of the movie where the audience yells, 'What are you doing? Turn back! How are you guys so stupid?'"

"Relax," Jake says. "Keep moving forward. The schematic said this is the only way out. Just hold onto each other's hands I think we're about to—YOW!"

I jump at Jake's sudden cry, a yelp escaping my own lips.

"What happened?!" Aleister cries. "Is the pilot dead?!"

"What?" Jake sounds annoyed. "No! The stupid little fox thing ran over my foot! It just...spooked me a little, okay? ...I'm gonna preemptively tell you all to shut up."

I hear the sound of little paws on dirt as the fox creature scampers ahead.

"Where's he going?" Lila asks.

"He's leaving us to die," Diego declares. "I can't say that I blame him."

"Wait! Listen!" From up ahead, I can hear the fox yipping. The sound doesn't seem to be fading. "I think he wants us to follow him. Maybe he can see in the dark."

"Okay, everyone stay quiet for a minute," Jake orders. He pauses a moment, and then tentatively leads us ahead. We turn around a corner, and a dim greenish-blue light breaks the darkness, lighting a small alcove.

"...Is anyone else seeing that thing glowing in front of us?" Diego asks. "Or are my eyes just playing tricks on me?"

Quinn releases my hand and approaches the light. "Looks like some sort of crystal or gemstone. It's mounted in the wall of the cave somehow."

"Certainly not natural," Aleister remarks. "Look. It's smoothly polished."

"Why did the fox lead us here?" Lila wonders. "To use this as a light source? I'm not sure it's bright enough."

"It's better than nothing. Let's see if we can get it out of the wall."

I brace my fingertips on the smooth edge of the orb and tug experimentally. Rather to my surprise, it pops out easily. It's about the size of a softball, weighty, but lighter than I expected. It's perfectly spherical and smooth, except for two odd indentations. They look like handprints, except with only four digits that narrow into claw-like points at the ends. I show it to the others.

"I don't know about you, but my hands don't exactly look like that," Lila remarks.

"Gotta be for a reason," Jake says thoughtfully. "...Alodia, put your hands in the markings."

"...What?"

"I don't know, Allie. I've seen _Indiana Jones._ If you touch that and a boulder comes rolling through here, I am _out._ "

"I don't think I can, anyway. Both the handprints are for right hands. It needs two people."

"I think two of us should try it and see what happens," Quinn suggests.

"Oh, man, is someone getting Freaky Fridayed?" Diego says with a grin. "Please tell me someone's getting Freaky Fridayed."

I poke him. "Buddy, if you're suddenly so into this, why don't you volunteer?"

"No way, Allie. This is all your show."

"I'll volunteer," Quinn says.

"Hmmph," I snort. "Well, if we are going to be Freaky Fridayed, better I end up in Quinn's body than yours."

"...Not necessarily true," Quinn says softly. "...But I wouldn't mind being in yours, Alodia."

"Step up then. Let's see what happens."

I lay my fingers in the grooves as best as I can manage, holding my middle and ring fingers together to mimic four digits. Quinn does the same on the other side. The instant her fingers touch the orb, I am blinded by a sudden light. I throw my left arm up to shield my eyes, squinting against the painful brightness. As the spots clear from my vision, I realize that the cavern around us is suddenly lit up with candles and torches mounted on the walls. For the first time, I notice that a mine cart track runs the length of the tunnel.

"I guess touching the orb must've turned on these lights..." I trail off, suddenly realizing that Quinn is the only person there. Everyone else is gone.

"Diego?" I call out. "Jake? Where is everyone?"

"Maybe they freaked out when the lights came on?" Quinn says uncertainly. "If they ran ahead, we should follow them."

"Yeah. It will certainly be easier to find our way out with the torches lit." I tuck the orb under my arm and we start down the tunnel.

As we pass a rickety mine cart, Quinn peers in. "Oh, wow! Alodia, look at this!"

"Is that gold? Are we in a gold mine?"

"Where are the workers? It doesn't look abandoned. There's still plenty of gold in this cave. Look!" She trails her fingers along the walls of the cave, tracing thick veins of glittering gold. "...It's amazing, isn't it? It's almost as if the earth itself is alive. Alive and crying..."

"That's kinda sad to think about. ...Don't you like gold?"

"I was always more of a diamonds girl."

"Really? You don't wear much jewelry at all."

"No. I like diamonds because they remind me how an eternity of pressure can result in something beautiful. Oh!" She claps her hands. "I have an idea! You might think I'm a little crazy, but...why walk when we can ride?"

She hops into an empty cart nearby and beckons for me to join her. I laugh.

"All right, let's do it." Keeping a firm grip on the orb, I climb into the cart. It's a tight fit, but I can't say I mind having Quinn almost in my lap. She grins up at me.

"Ready?"

"Hit it!"

Quinn disengages the brake, and the mine cart starts rolling down an incline, slowly at first, and then gathering speed. Quinn whoops excitedly as the flames of the torches and candles blur past us. I can't help but feel a thrill.

"This was the best idea!"

"Maybe not the best!" Quinn cries, suddenly panicked. "Look out!"

I look up and realize the cart is barreling towards a wooden barricade, too quickly to stop in time.

"Quinn, get down!"

I throw my body over hers, and pull us both down fast. The cart shatters the barricade and topples over, spilling us into the dirt. I am just barely able to keep my grip on the orb, pressed between my body and hers. I slowly lift my head.

"Quinn? Are you all right?"

From underneath me, her pretty face inches from mine, Quinn smiles sweetly. "Hello there."

I feel my mouth go dry. She shifts her body just slightly under mine. Before I quite realize what's happening, we've come together in a kiss. Oh god, her mouth tastes like cinnamon...her lips are so soft and warm...is that her hand on the back of my head, drawing me in deeper...?

I feel my stomach flutter anxiously. Gently but certainly, I pull back. Quinn smiles sheepishly. "Sorry. Should I not have done that?"

"Don't misunderstand me. I liked it. ...A lot. I'm just...not sure what it is we're doing exactly."

She shrugs. "I don't know, either, Alodia. I just know it's what I felt like doing in the moment."

I feel my anxiety ebb away. I smile. "Yeah. Me too." I stand, offering her a hand up. She accepts, and I pull her to her feet. We look around us. Down one pathway, a pale white light illuminates a wall of the tunnel.

"Hey, Quinn. See that? Around that bend? Looks like-"

"Daylight! Alodia, you did it! You found a way out!" She takes my hand and we jog around the bend...where we run straight into a blackened human skull, grinning at us from atop a pike planted in the dirt.

Quinn screams. I leap back, dropping the orb in surprise. Instantly, we're plunged back into darkness. I fall to my knees, searching the dirt in vain for the orb.

"Alodia!" Quinn whimpers. "Where are you?! What happened?!"

"I'm here!" I grope in the dark and find her hand. "I dropped the orb thingy...and now I can't find it!"

"I...can't find that skull, either! Alodia, what is this place?"

"Alodia! Quinn!"

Several pairs of footsteps come running up behind us.

"There you are!" Jake cries. "You can't just run off like that!"

"What are you talking about? Where did _you_ go? We just followed the torches down this path."

"What in the heavens are you talking about? What torches?"

"Guys, let's not fight," Quinn says firmly. "Something weird is happening and we don't know what. But what matters is we found a way out."

"Quinn's right. We saw daylight that way. Link up and follow me."

I take Jake and Diego by the hands and lead everyone in the direction we saw the light coming from. At least, I hope to God we're going the right way. But...I can't see the light anymore.

"...It...it was right here..."

"Allie, I know it's been awhile since I've been outside, but I remember daylight being a little...brighter?"

"I'm feeling my way along the wall," Lila calls, "and it seems like this part of the tunnel collapsed."

"How? We _just_ saw daylight coming from this way!"

"Let's just keep looking." Quinn's voice is hard with determination. "We have to be close."

We keep going. ...But soon we hear splashing underfoot.

"Are we...standing in water?" My question is answered for me when it starts to lap at my ankles, creeping under the tops of my sneakers and soaking my socks.

Jake curses under his breath. "Dammit. Cave's flooded. Dead end."

"Maybe not. See that?"

I squint, realizing I can see something shimmering under the water.

"It looks like..."

"It's daylight!" Lila gasps. "Coming up through the water!"

"There must be an underwater tunnel to the outside. We can swim through."

"Swim?" Aleister balks. "You may leave me here, thank you very much. Let my family know I hated them."

Jake snorts. "Come here, Malfoy. I'll drag you out myself. Hold on."

I hear splashing as Jake dives under, presumably pulling Aleister with him. I am about to follow when I feel something solid brush against my leg. Nothing alive, I think, because it doesn't react when I start a little. I bend to pick it up. It's definitely not alive...but in the darkness, I can't tell what it is. I feel some kind of leathery cloth, and a long hose-thing...

"Hey...I found something floating here...but I can't tell what it is in the dark."

"Hold onto it, if you can," Diego suggests. "It might be important."

I can just make out his shape as he dives gracefully into the water, swimming towards the light. Taking a deep breath, I dive in after him. The saltwater stings my eyes. It creeps under the duct-tape-and-torn-shirt bandage around my torso and burns in my wounds. But I see the vague shape of the underwater cavern in the refracting light. I steel myself against the pain and push myself towards the light.

I can't hold onto my breath much longer. At any moment, I'll have to exhale. Diego's shape takes form out of the darkness, dolphin-kicking through the water ahead of me. I swim forward, keeping my grip on the object, trying to dolphin-kick like he does to push through faster. I start to let my breath out slowly, like air out of the pinched end of a balloon.

Just when I think instinct is going to betray me, forcing me to inhale tepid saltwater, I clear the tunnel. I kick desperately to the surface and break free, greedily gulping air. I look around me. I've come up in the mouth of an ocean cave. To my relief, I see that the shore is not far. The others are already there, wringing saltwater from their clothes. I swim over.

On the beach, Jake shakes the water out of his hair. Watching him, the blue fox creature shakes out his fur. Jake snorts.

"Copycat. ...Er, fox. Whatever."

"So, Allie, what did you find?"

I look down at the object in my hand. "...It's...some kind of gas mask."

Diego whistles. "It's old, too. That looks like it's from around the First World War."

"What would something like that be doing in that cavern? And how long has it been there?"

I am about to reply, when a sudden realization makes my blood run cold.

"...Quinn...oh, God, where's Quinn?!"

"Didn't she come up?" Lila asks, going pale. "Sh-she was right behind me!"

I drop the gas mask, whirling around to search the water's surface for any sign of Quinn. Nothing. No flash of red-gold hair. Just white-crested waves.

"...She may have gotten lost or trapped," I say, my voice trembling. "...I'm going after her."

Before anyone can protest, I sprint back into the ocean. As soon as it's deep enough, I dive under, plunging beneath the surface, once again fighting against the pain of the saltwater in my eyes and the wounds on my ribs. All I can hear is the swirling currents on one side of my eardrums, and my own rushing blood on the other. Where are you, Quinn...?

...As I swim deeper, I see her, a still form framed against the sunlight piercing the water, long waves of red-gold hair flowing off in all directions like slow-moving flames. She's not far from the surface. ...But she isn't moving...

I surface, taking a quick gulp of air, then dive down again, reaching out for her. Her slack body floats towards me, and I pull her into my arms. For a moment, her eyes meet mine, and I feel relief flood through me. ...Then her eyes flutter closed as she sinks into unconciousness. Panic hits me as bubble flow out of her mouth. Oh, God...she's going to breathe in the water...

I kick frantically towards the surface, but she doesn't go anywhere. That's when I see it. ...Vines of dark green seaweed coiled around her ankles, snaring her. I reach down to slip them off, but the moment I touch them, they coil more tightly, almost like a reflex. ...What the hell? To my horror, I realize that they are retracting, pulling Quinn further down.

...My lungs are burning. I have to surface again. I do, quickly, then dive again, going straight for the vines. They seem thin enough to gnaw through, and I do, ripping into them with ease. Quinn slumps in my arms. A distant sound cuts through the rushing in my ears. ...It sounds almost like a scream. I shoot towards the surface like a rocket, cradling Quinn in my arms. Glancing back, I can just barely make out another pair of vines snaking towards me.

As we break the surface, a wave instantly batters me. I sputter, spitting out seawater.

"There the are!" I hear Aleister cry as I struggle towards the beach.

Quinn is limp in my arms, her long hair matted and tangled with mine. Her eyes are still closed. As I paddle towards the shore, the others rush into the tide towards me. Jake lifts Quinn from my arms, and Diego braces me on one side, helping me limp out of the water. As Jake lays Quinn on the sand, I stumble and drop to my knees beside her.

"She isn't breathing," Jake says.

I don't answer. I'm already tipping her head back and pinching her nose. I cover my mouth with hers and push my breath into her lungs with all the force I can muster. One breath. Two. Three. Four. Five. I move my hands to her sternum and count off thirty compressions.

"It's not working!" Aleister wails. "Alodia, you're not-"

"Shut the hell up!" Jake snaps.

I cover Quinn's mouth with mine again, and breathe out. One breath. Two...

Quinn's body convulses violently under me. I take her in my arms, turning her onto her side as she chokes and vomits and coughs about a pint of seawater out onto the sand. ...Along with more than a few chunks of Raj's hangover cure from this morning.

"Quinn!" I cry weakly.

Quinn moans a little. Her convulsions die down to trembling. "...Alodia?" she whispers.

"Oh, thank God," Lila breathes.

"I'm here, Quinn," I whisper, feeling tears in my eyes. "How are you feeling?"

She cranes her neck to look up at me. I gently turn her towards me, and her hand comes up to cup my cheek.

"You saved me...again."

I pull her into a tight embrace, clutching her against me. I can't believe how much I'm shaking, how hard my heart is pounding.

"...I know you said not to risk myself for you, that you're not worth it. ...But goddammit, you're worth it to me."

Her arms wind around me, and she squeezes weakly. "...Thank you."

I pull back, placing her gently on the sand, but I keep hold of her hand.

"What happened down there?" Diego asks. "You were right behind us one minute, but then..."

"Something...I felt something take me."

"It was these vines. Like kelp or seaweed, but stronger. They were wrapped around her ankles."

"And she got stuck in them?"

"Not exactly. They...they grabbed her and pulled her down. Like they had a mind of their own." I shiver a little. Quinn shifts in my arms, attempting to climb to her feet. I brace her. "Maybe you should rest..."

"I'm okay," she assures me. "We have to keep going if we want to get off this island. The others are meeting us at the airstrip, remember? We can't leave them waiting around there. Not with that sabertooth on the loose."

"She's right," Jake says, nodding at Quinn. "We should get going. But Red, you be careful. You may be out of the water, but that doesn't mean you're out of danger."

"I understand. Come on. The airstrip should be this way."

We head off towards the jungle, making our way towards the airstrip. I feel one hand drift upwards to clutch my ribs. The hot sun dries our clothes as we walk, but it does nothing for the sea salt that crusts around my throbbing wounds. The makeshift bandage is coming off, the seawater having erroded much of the adhesive from the duct tape. I'm glad I didn't fight Jake about leaving.

"Allie?" Diego puts a hand on my shoulder. "You okay?"

I smile weakly at him. "Just hurts. I'll be fine when we can relax a little."

"Keep your voices down," Jake murmurs. "That sabertooth is still out there somewhere."

"Right. Sorry." God, I've got to get out of this jungle. And Diego's expression tells me he's going to keep worrying until that happens. Poor boy's going to work himself into a panic attack if I let him. I flash him as easy a smile as I can manage, and pick up the pace, pushing ahead of the others. I'm pushing my way through the dense mess of foliage when suddenly, I hear a twig snap, not behind me, but in front. The ferns in front of my face stir, and then there is a pair of eyes level with my own. I whip my fist forward, and my knuckles collide with-

"Ow!"

"...Michelle?!"

Sure enough, Michelle is staggering back, clutching her forehead where my fist hit. The rest of my classmates are behind her.

"You _punched_ me!" she shrieks indignantly.

"Oh, my God, I'm so sorry!" I moan, feeling my face get hot. "I thought you were the sabertooth!"

Craig is doubled over with laughter, slapping his knee. "Oh, man, dude! That was awesome!"

I groan, covering my face with my hands.

"At least you didn't start screaming and attract every predator in the rainforest," Estela says flatly. "Speaking of which, the rest of you should shut up."

"Okay, enough!" Zahra snaps. "The airstrip's just up ahead. What are we all waiting for? To become cat food?"

As we trudge onward, I find myself beside Estela, a little bit behind the others. I count us off quickly and exhale with relief.

"Good. We're all here. After Craig stormed off, I was worried we wouldn't be able to convince everyone to leave."

"I'm not leaving," Estela says flatly.

"Wait, what? Why?"

"...Unfinished business..."

I am quiet for a moment. "...Listen...Estela...whatever you're doing here...I want to help. If I can..."

She looks at me for a long time. She seems to be searching me. Probably for some sign of deception. She's clearly not someone who trusts very easily. I meet her eyes steadily. She won't find any deception from me about this. Perhaps to my surprise, I really do mean that.

"Man, you are stupid," she says at last. "Trust me, you don't want to get yourself involved. Once you're in, there's no way out. So for your own good, go back to your nice college bubble, live your dreams, and be happy. It's what your meant for."

"I think _I'll_ decide what I'm meant for," I say firmly.

"...If only that were true..." She shakes her head. "Now keep your voice down. There's a sabertooth after us, remember."

"...Can't exactly forget," I mutter, touching my ribs. "...You don't seem very surprised by that, though."

"Nothing surprises me anymore."

I can't help myself. I grin, batting my eyelashes a little. "Not even me?"

She rolls her eyes, but I notice a smile playing around her mouth.

"Airstrip's just past here!" Jake calls softly from up ahead. He holds aside a large fern so we can all pass through. "We made it. Safe and sound. Now let's get the...oh, no...oh, _shit!_ "

He takes off running, and the rest of us follow. As we pass through the ferns, we see immediately what Jake is running towards. At the far side of the airstrip, noxious black smoke billows out of the windows of the shuttered hangar.

"My plane!"

"Come on!" I shout. "We have to put that fire out!"

We sprint the rest of the length of the airstrip, reaching the closed hangar doors. I can already feel the heat emanating from within.

"Sean!" Jake yells. "Help me get these doors open!"

The two men tug at the massive doors. The rest of us join in, and the doors part slowly. A wall of acrid black smoke plumes from the open doors and spills into the sky. Everyone at the doors gets a lungful of the stinking cloud. It burns like fire in my throat and deep in my chest. We erupt into fits of coughing.

I wave the smoke away from my face as best I can, and squint through the fog. I can just about make out the outline of his small plane, engulfed in bright orange flames.

"Jake..." I choke. "...Your plane..."

"...It's gone..."

"There goes our ride," Zahra mutters.

Through the oppressive smoke, something catches my eye. A round piece of metal glitters on the concrete floor just inside the hangar. I tap Sean's arm, pointing.

"Do you see that? What is it?" I start towards it.

"Alodia, be careful! You won't be able to breathe in there!"

"I think I can reach it!" I pull the collar of my shirt up over my mouth and nose and shield my eyes against the smoke. I push forward and pick up the small metal disk. To my relief, it's cool enough to handle. ...I immediately know what I'm looking at.

...But in the next instant, the world around me starts to glow a little brighter. As if in slow motion, I turn to see a trail of flames racing towards the plane as the gasoline line catches fire.

"Alodia!"

Someone crashes into me, tackling me to the ground. A deafening explosion shakes the earth under me. I can feel oppressive heat bloom around me. A body on top of me presses me into the dirt, arms holding me uncomfortably tight, but I can still see steel raining down around me. The rocking slowly stops, but there is a terrible ringing in my ears. For several seconds, I can't hear anything. Then, Diego's voice breaks through the ringing.

"Allie! Allie!"

The body on top of me lifts off slowly. It's Jake. He looks down at me, meeting my eyes. He brushes my hair out of my face with a hand that trembles.

"You still with me?"

"...Jake..." I say softly. "...You could have been killed! Why would you...?"

He smirks. "Think you can leave me alone with this crowd? Guess again, Princess. I ain't leaving this island without you, understand?"

I nod weakly, looking between him and Diego, now kneeling at my shoulder. They help me to my feet. My head is still swimming a little, and my legs feel wobbly. Diego braces me as Jake looks back at his smoldering plane. He gives a low, resigned whistle, but there is heartbreak in his eyes.

"...How could this happen?" he murmurs. "I don't understand..."

"I...found this..." I hold out the object I found in the hangar. Jake goes pale when he sees it.

"...The padlock to the hangar doors."

"Yeah..."

"...I locked up the hangar before I went to the control tower."

"But the lock isn't broken..." I start to tremble. "...Someone unlocked the hangar."

"But who? There's no one on this damned island except..."

There is a palpable shift in the mood of the whole group. Suddenly, everyone is looking at everyone else with suspicion.

"Don't look at me!" Michelle whines. "I didn't do anything! It was probably Aleister! He looks creepy!"

"Back off, Michelle!" Grace snarls with startling ferocity. "He didn't do this!"

"Woah, guys!" Sean steps between the two women. "We are _not_ doing this just now! We can handle this back at the resort! All that matters now is that everyone is in one piece."

I feel Diego's arm tighten around my waist, pressing on my wounds. "Yeah and, uh...that might not be for long..."

I look up at his face, and follow his gaze across the airstrip, to where the ferns are rustling. They part, and my heart sinks. The sabertooth slinks out, fangs glistening in the sun. It growls deep in its throat, prowling towards us.

Craig moans. "Aw, you've gotta be kidding me!"

As a group, we back up as the great cat advances. I grip Diego tightly. A sabertooth tiger in front of us, a smoldering inferno behind. And the sabertooth is coiled to strike. But then, something small and blue darts out in front of it.

The blue fox creature raises his hackles and lets out a sound like an angry cat.

"Run, little guy!" Jake yells. "This is a bit of a mismatch!"

But the fox stands his ground, yapping and growling. The sabertooth raises one paw, cocking its head curiously. It almost seems to be laughing at the tiny thing threatening it. It pulls back its paw to strike, when suddenly the fox takes a deep breath and blows.

 _Ffrrrhh!_

Snow crystals materialize in the air and fly at the tiger, instantly freeing its paw in ice. The tiger yelps in surprise and leaps back, but another breath from the fox freezes its back foot to the ground. The tiger panics and starts to thrash, breaking free from the ice and galloping off into the rainforest. The fox turns towards us and sits back on his haunches, clearly pleased with himself. We all stare at him, dumb with shock.

"...Did...you all see that?" Grace asks.

"...No way..." Jake whispers.

I look around...from the charred, broken plane...to the ice-breathing fox in front of me...to the fleeing sabertooth tiger.

"Guys..." I look back at my classmates. "...Where the _hell_ are we?!"

 _Seventy-two hours ago..._

 _The Caribbean Sea_

 _The Caribbean sea ebbs and flows against the hull of a stunning luxury yacht. The sea is calm today, creating just a gentle motion across the immaculate decks. In polished Oxfords, the man stands at the bow, scanning the endless blue horizon through a pair of binoculars._

 _"Where are you, my friend?" he murmurs. "...She can't have gone far."_

 _Something colorful flits in front of the binoculars' lenses. He looks up and sees a breathtaking creature, a seahorse with iridescent butterfly's wings. A smile crosses his goateed lips._

 _"Well, aren't you lovely."_

 _From below decks, a servant emerges, carrying a silver platter, where an encrypted satellite phone rings impatiently. Without taking his eyes off the horizon, Rourke snatches up the phone._

 _"Hello, darling."_

 _"There is a situation at the resort, Everett." The woman's voice is a steady and soothing alto, with an upperclass English accent. "The wedding party is quite alarmed. The bride has gone missing."_

 _Rourke frowns. "Bride? What bride are you talking about? There are no weddings at The Celestial this week-"_

 _He falls silent suddenly as the world flashes white for a microsecond. He turns away from the horizon for a moment, and looks over the island. La Huerta. His island. His crowning acheivement. The island trembles. Red and blue lights dance across the island in a dazzling aurora. The gentle white smoke drifting off the peak of Mount Atropo turns black. The waves begin to pick up._

 _"...So it begins..."_

 _"Everett, tachyon readings have spiked." An anxious tremor has entered the woman's voice. "It appears the Tau event is cascading."_

 _"A bit ahead of schedule. Appropriate, wouldn't you say? No matter. Proceed with the operation as planned. I'm excited, aren't you, darling?"_

 _"What about the guests?"_

 _"Ah. Right. Them. I presume we should evacuate the resort. I leave that business to you, dear."_

 _"You should get to safety as well, Everett. Please."_

 _"Come now. You know I must be returning to my office. That is where the fun really begins."_

 _"Are you sure that-" A shuddering roar from the ocean drowns out the rest of her question. He turns in time to see the glittering seahorse vanish inside the mouth of the colossal creature breaching the surface. He smiles._

 _"There you are. You know it's rude to keep someone waiting."_

 _The creature slams back down beneath the water, unleashing a massive wave that drenches him clean through._

 _"Unfortunately, I must be going. But no doubt I will be seeing you again soon."_

 _He turns and heads back to the bridge of the yacht, to a large touchscreen on the control panel. He begins typing._

 _"Everett...Everett!" the woman on the phone calls. "Everett, can you hear me? Does this postpone the timeline for the project?"_

 _"It accelerates it." His eyes scan a file on the screen. "Don't fret, darling. Our new arrivals will be in excellent hands. Proceed as planned. This island is their destiny, one way or another. They're the key to everything."_

 _Without waiting for an answer, he hangs up and hands the phone back to the servant. The servant heads back below decks, but not before glancing over his shoulder at the screen and seeing several faces flicker past..._

 _...A handsome man with shaggy brown hair and a day-old beard...a striking young woman with dark hair pulled back in a tight ponytail...an effervescent beauty with flowing red hair...a muscular young man with a dark complexion...and an exquisite young woman with golden blonde hair falling softly around her shoulders._

 _It is on this face that Rourke lingers._


	6. Choosing Sides

My lungs are on fire. My legs burn and throb from sprinting all the way from the seaside airstrip, trying to keep up with Estela.

"Come on, come on!" Estela growls.

Finally, the last of us cross the gated fence at the resort entrance. Estela, Sean, and Jake drag the heavy gate closed and back away. All thirteen of us scan the rainforest beyond anxiously, praying the sabertooth didn't follow. For a moment, the only sound is a staggered chorus of gasping as we struggle to catch our breath.

"...I think we're clear," Estela says at last. Our relief is palpable.

Raj leans over, hands on his knees. "That's...enough exercise...for the rest of my life..."

"Estela!" Lila yelps. "Where are you going?!"

I look up. Estela slips her lithe frame through the bars of the fence with serpentine grace, barely touching them.

"I got you back to the resort alive. You're welcome. But now I've got things to do."

"Estela!" Her name slips out before I quite realize it. She looks back at me expectantly. "...Be careful out there..."

She meets my eyes and gives me a nod of respect. "I will, Alodia. ...Stay here. It's safe at the resort."

I try to answer that I will, but suddenly, the jungle is bending before my eyes, turning a strange mess of colors. Static is creeping in at the edges of my vision. Cold crashes over me in a wave, as if someone dumped icewater over me.

"Alodia?" Sean's voice sounds like it's coming through a tunnel. "Are you all right?"

"I'm fine...I just...need to...focus..." ...Why won't my eyes focus?

"You should catch her," I hear Estela say. "She is going to fall."

Almost as if responding to a cue, I feel the ground tilt beneath me, and my legs give out. Something keeps me suspended above the hard concrete. A flurry of shadowy, staticky figures surrounds me, carried in a cloud of garbled voices. A few words reach me here and there. I hear my name again and again.

"...Those wounds..."

"...Inside...shock..."

"...Allie...Allie..." That must be Diego. He sounds scared. ...The others are harder to identify. I'm rocking, swaying, as if on the sea. "Come on, Allie, stay with me..."

I can feel myself shivering violently. But somehow, the coolness on my brow is soothing.

"...Yeah..." I hear Jake say. "...That ain't happening."

Someone answers, but I can't make out what they're saying.

"Oh, that's happening. That's absolutely happening. But you ain't gonna be the one doing it. I ain't letting you near her. Not with that."

There's another response. Jake answers lowly. The world starts to slide back into focus. I'm lying on a couch in The Celestial's lobby, my head on Sean's lap. He holds my left hand in his. Diego is beside me, holding my other hand and bathing my forehead with a damp cloth.

"I'm kinda with Jake on this," he's saying.

"Fine!" Michelle snaps. "Here. Get her to drink this."

Sean looks down at me, and I focus on his face. He smiles. "Hey, Alodia. You with us?"

"I...think so..."

He releases my hand and cradles my head, lifting it gently. He puts a glass to my lips. I open my mouth and swallow a warm, slightly salty mouthful.

"...What...?"

"Water and a little salt. Closest thing to saline we can manage. Unless you want to drink contact lens fluid." That voice is Jake, and he's kneeling at my side with Diego. He jerks his head towards Michelle, who stands with her arms crossed, scowling. "The resident chemist says the dose should be almost right."

"What happened...?"  
"You passed out for a moment. You're in mild shock, but you're going to be okay. ...We need to get those wounds cleaned. They're not deep, but they were exposed to god-knows-what when we swam out of that cave." I nod slowly. Jake runs a hand through his hair. "...Get as much of that down as you can first, okay? I want you to be alert for this, if possible."

The gentle gravity in his voice is simultaneously reassuring and frightening. This isn't going to be pleasant. But I find myself trusting him. I do as he tells me. I swallow water and salt and lie back on Sean's lap. He takes my left hand again. Diego keeps hold of my right and strokes my hair.

"Okay, Princess, to preserve your modesty, I'm gonna ask you to slip your arm out of your shirt so I can get access to the wounds."

Diego lets my hand go just long enough for me to do so. Jake cuts away the makeshift bandages from earlier and peels them off my skin. I glance down and see him hold up a cloth and a plastic bottle of clear liquid. His blue eyes meet mine.

"Hold still now," he says gently. "I'm sorry, but this is gonna hurt."

I grip the hands in mine and feel them squeeze back. With the cloth poised underneath, Jake trickles the bottle's contents into my wounds. I gasp at the antiseptic sting. On it's own, it wouldn't be unbearable, but after a brief pause to blot the wounds with the cloth, he starts to trickle it in again, flushing out the dirt and grime and sea salt. As it goes on, it becomes a case of death by a thousand paper cuts, and I'm too exhausted to be stoic. In less than a minute, I'm whimpering. I feel Diego kiss my forehead lightly.

"That's it, Alodia," Sean murmurs. "You're doing just fine. You're going to be fine."

Jake puts the bottle down and gently wipes at the edges of the wounds with the cloth. The flesh around the wounds burns like fire. I shut my eyes, not wanting any of my friends to see the tears forming in them.

"...You're pretty good at that," Michelle remarks grudgingly over his shoulder.

"First aid kinda came with the territory in the military. ...Still with us, Princess?"

I nod weaky. "I'm he—ah!" As I cry out, I feel his hand pause, just for a moment.

"...It's almost over, Princess. Hang in there."

I dare to open my eyes and look down. Jake takes the cloth away, now mottled pink with blood. I hear a rattling sound, and realize he's fussing with a first aid kit.

"At least this thing is thoroughly stocked," Michelle says.

"Can't argue with that. They've got Band-Aids big enough for sabertooth scratches. You'd think they were expecting that."

He applies an adhesive bandage to my ribs. It is indeed large enough to cover the two jagged wounds left by the sabertooth's claws.

"That should hold you together for now. Take a bunch of them with you so you can keep it clean."

Diego exhales slowly and smiles down at me. "You okay?"

I nod and give him a weak smile, blinking hastily to clear the film of tears from my eyes. "Never better."

"Try not to scare me like that again, okay?"

"I'll do my best."

I try to sit up slowly, which I manage with Sean and Diego's help. Jake stands and marches over to the small bar in the lobby lounge. Reaching behind it, he snatches up a bottle of spiced rum.

"Who else could use a drink right now?"

Diego raises a hand. "That would be me, thanks."

"Seconded!" Zahra says.

"Jake, please..." Grace says softly.

"This isn't the time for that," Sean agrees. He hasn't let go of my hand.

"Pretty sure alcohol was invented for times like this," Jake counters.

"...Are we gonna talk about what just happened?"

"You mean the part where our plane decided to celebrate Fourth of July with some fireworks?" Diego deadpans. "Or the part where Fantastic Mr. Fox went full Elsa on a saber-toothed tiger?"

The fox creature chirrups like a cat, tipping his head to the side.

"Could we all just take a deep breath and calm down?" Lila pleads. "There's no sense getting upset over a freak accident."

Jake puts the bottle down hard on the bar. The sound echoes through the lobby. Lila jumps, pressing her lips together.

"It _wasn't_ an accident," Jake snarls. He pulls the padlock out of his pocket and slams it down on the bar. "Alodia found this at the hangar. She risked her life to get it. Someone unlocked the doors. Someone went in there and tampered with my plane. Any lightbulbs going off?"

He narrows his eyes at Lila. She shrinks under his gaze.

"...M...me?"

"Who has a key to that hangar besides me?"

"H-how would I know that? I'm just a tour guide!"

"Guys, hang on a second," Quinn pipes up. "Let's say someone did intentionally destroy Jake's plane. Why? Why would anyone do that?"

"Isn't it obvious?" I murmur. "...To keep us here. And as for who, I think it was someone else on the island."

"Like who exactly?" Zahra asks.

"I don't know. It's a big island. Who knows who could be lurking out there, watching us?"

"Yes, but, there's no evidence that that's true," Grace protests. "With what we know, isn't it more likely that whoever destroyed the plane was...one of us?"

"Maybe. But right now, I'm not willing to tear our group apart by making accusations. Not until we have more facts."

Grace smiles. "I think you're right. I'm with you."

"Good call," Sean agrees. "Distrusting each other is the last thing we need right now. What matters is that we lost our ride. We need to focus on finding another way off the island."

"Woah, hang on!" Craig protests. "I know y'all think of me as the quiet guy-"

"Literally no one has ever thought that," Zahra snaps.

Craig ignores her. "-but I've got something to say. You're calling it an accident or sabotage. I call it a goddamn miracle! You were about to bail on a legit paradise! But we've got a second chance to make the most of our luck!"

"Craig, this isn't lucky!" Sean says sharply. "This is incredibly unlucky!"

"Because you're choosing to see it like that. Dude, we're been playing together a long time. I've had your back since day one, since we were freshmen roommates. On and off the field. I know you're the team captain and all, but right now, I need you to hear me out."

"I do hear you, man. But this is crazy! Alodia was almost killed! We can't risk this! Besides," he smiles at his friend, "We have so much of our lives ahead of us. Senior season...the draft...going pro together like we always talked about. Remember?"

"...Of course I do..."

"One day, you and me, we'll buy this whole damn island and party here all summer long."

Craig shakes his head. "Nah, man, that's dreams. You're talking about the future, when all we ever really got is right now."

"...Craig is right," I say softly. "At least partially. ...The future is no guarantee, all we really have is now."

"See? Alodia gets it."

Sean looks at me in shock. "You're saying you just want to stay on the island?"

"...I'm saying that we should make the most of what we know we have. We shouldn't risk what we've got just to gamble on a future that might not happen."

"Cheers to that," Jake says.

"Allie!" Diego cries. "Live for the moment is a fine philosophy, but dammit, if you're on fire, choose the next moment and beat the flames out! And if you've just been clawed by a saber-toothed tiger and nearly blown up, get yourself off the island and get to a hospital!"

"And how exactly would she do that?" Michelle asks irritably.

"Jake's plane can't have been the only way out," Sean says. "There's gotta be other vehicles somewhere. It's a big island."

"Sean, do you really want to leave the resort?" Grace asks incredulously. "Even Estela told us we should stay put. Shouldn't we wait for someone to come get us?"

"I won't lie. For now, we are safer at The Celestial. But we don't know how long that will last. And we don't know if anyone's coming. We should assume we're on our own and find our own way out."

"You wouldn't even know where to start looking," Jake counters. "Meanwhile, Tony the Tiger and god knows what else is out there hungry for a snack."

"You were the one who wanted to leave the island in the first place," I mutter.

"Yeah, when we had a sure way out. You might've noticed, things changed a little back there when you were nearly blown up. We should sit tight and stick to the resort. At least we're fenced in here, and you can get some rest."

I rub my hands over my face. "Okay. So we either leave now and search the island for a way out, or we stay put where it's safe and hope that someone comes for us. ...I think we should vote on it. That way, we all have equal input."

"Democracy is a deeply flawed system subject to the whims of the mob," Aleister declares. "But...in this circumstance, I suppose it's fair."

"I'm with Alodia," Michelle says, much to my surprise. "I am definitely having my say in this."

"All right," Sean agrees. "I'll start. I vote we leave now."

"Me too," Michelle says. "I just want to get out of here."

"Well, I say we stay and not get ourselves killed," Jake says.

"Seconded," Lila agrees. "Help will be here any moment now."

Quinn shakes her head. "We've been here over a day now. I don't think anyone's coming back. I vote we leave now."

Zahra nods. "Ditto. I never wanted to come on this stupid trip to begin with."

"What about you, Malfoy?"

"As much as I despise taking your side, _Jacob_ , I also vote we stay put."

"Me too," Grace chimes in. "I really don't want to be wandering the rainforest right now."

"Same here," says Raj. "Plus, this place has a spa."

"...Craig?" Sean looks hopefully at his friend. Craig looks back, holding his gaze for a long moment.

"...Stay," he finally says.

"Okay, that puts the vote at four for 'leave now,' and six for 'stay put.'" Quinn looks at me. "Seven makes the majority...what's your vote, Alodia?"

I look back and forth between Sean and Jake. I glance over at Diego beside me. I take a deep breath and let my head fall into my hands.

"...Stay put. ...I don't think I am physically capable of going back out there right now. Not just yet."

Sean looks disappointed. "...Ah."

"That's a majority. Knew you'd be smart about this, Princess."

"Woo!" Craig yelps. "Stay wins! Suck it!"

"Diego...you're the only one who didn't get to vote."

"That's okay," he says softly.

I swallow. "...What were you gonna vote for?"

"Really, Allie. It doesn't matter now..."

"Are we done here?" Jake asks. "Because that hammock out back is calling my name."

"Well, hold on," Sean says. "We're staying here, but that doesn't mean we should just sit around and hope that help shows up. We don't even know if anyone back home knows what happened, and we're not expected back for a week."

"Sean is correct. We must search the resort for a way to contact the mainland and request help. Without cell service or internet here, that's our only option."

"Hey, go right ahead, more power to ya. I ain't stopping you."

Sean narrows his eyes. "We're all in this together, Jake."

"You know, sometimes you sound like my old sergeant. I hated that guy."

Jake turns and stalks off. Craig looks at Sean for a long moment. Then, he turns and follows after him.

I look up at Sean. "...You okay?"

"Yeah...yeah, I'm fine. The rest of us should get searching. The sooner we call for help, the quicker we get ourselves out of here."

"Not Allie, though," Diego says firmly. "Not right away. As long as we're staying put here, _she_ needs to get some rest."

"Let's get her in one of the first floor rooms, then," Grace suggests. "Don't make her ride all the way up to the penthouses."

"Right." Diego stands up and goes behind the reception desk to grab a key. He comes back and offers me a hand. "Come on, Allie. I'm not letting you say no to this."

"I wouldn't dare."

I sleep for about an hour in one of the first-floor rooms. Diego lies on the bed beside me, a protective, comforting presence. The blue fox creature sleeps on the bed, too, curled up at my feet. The rest is refreshing, and at the end of it, I roll over, feeling if not one-hundred percent better, at least sufficiently renewed. Diego sits up when I shift.

"Hey. How you feeling?"

"Better." I wince a little. "Still hurts, but it's not too bad."

"Just be gentle with yourself, okay? Promise me you will be."

"I promise."

"Good. ...Here. I got you something." He takes a plate off the bedside table and hands it to me. "Turkey sandwich. Your favorite."

As soon as I see it, my stomach growls. I haven't eaten since breakfast. I barely manage to get out a thank you before I tear into the sandwich like I haven't seen food in days. Diego lays back and watches me eat. After a moment, I offer him a bite, but he shakes his head.

"I had one while you were out." I nod and stuff another bite into my mouth. He smiles a little. "...Jake has it bad for you, by the way."

I choke a little. "What? How did you come to that conclusion?"

He grins. "Come on, Allie. He dove right in to save you from the plane exploding. And he protected you from torture by Michelle."

"...I'm confused."

"Michelle was going to clean your wounds, but Jake wouldn't let her. He said since Sean flirts with you, and you had insulted her and accidently punched her in the face, he wasn't going to let her near you with anything that would hurt."

I laugh, which makes my ribs ache. "Remind me to thank him for that."

"Besides all that, I was watching his face when he was tending you..."

"...And?"

"...He stopped a little every time you made a noise. He didn't like seeing you in pain." He takes my hand and squeezes it. "...I didn't either."

I squeeze back. "...Thanks for being there. And not commenting when I knotted up like a baby."

"Those were claw wounds from a sabertooth tiger. Frankly, I'm surprised you were as quiet as you were."

There is a knock at the door. Diego gets up and opens it to reveal Grace and Aleister. I sit up.

"Hey, Alodia. How are you feeling?"

"Much better, thanks."

"Do you guys feel up to searching rooms with me and Aleister? We've just about finished on this floor."

"...Yeah. I'm ready to get up and move around a little. ...How about you, Diego?"

Diego shrugs. "...Yeah. Sure, I'll come along."

I slip into a pair of flip-flops and head off with the others. The blue fox creature gets up and trots after me.

We move up to the second floor and start combing the rooms for anything useful. We actually end up finding an ethernet cable, and a laptop to attach it to, but it still fails to find a network. If there ever was internet service here, it's out.

Diego sighs. "A picturesque Caribbean island...with absolutely no internet. I can't tell if we're in heaven or hell." He frowns. "If it turns out to be purgatory, I'm gonna be pissed."

"Mrrph!" The fox creature sneezes, and a small flurry of snow shakes out of his fur.

Aleister looks sidelong at the creature. "What is that...that _thing_ anyway?"

"Whatever he is, he's not going anywhere," Grace remarks. "Maybe we should give him a name..."

"How about Iceman?" Diego suggests.

"Aaron Brrr!"

"You're all wrong," Aleister scoffs. "His name should obviously be Kelvin."

"Like absolute zero!" Grace laughs. "Great idea!"

Aleister blushes. "Oh...um...thank you..."

The fox creature jumps up onto the bed and trots over to nuzzle my hand. I stroke his ice-blue head.

"You know, I was thinking of calling him Murphy. Because he's always going, 'Mrrph mrrph!'" I use both hands to scratch behind his ears. "How does that sound, fella?"

"Mrfm!" he answers.

"Sounds like a yes to me," Grace says. "Murphy he is!"

Laughter from outside the window catches my attention. I pick up the newly-christened Murphy and go to the window, which overlooks the pool. Jake, Quinn, and Craig all lounge in the hot tub.

"Quinn, we said two swigs and then we pass the rum!" Jake complains. "Do rules mean nothing to you?"

Quinn smiles with mock contrition. "Sorry!" she sings.

"Don't worry!" Craig says. "I brought plenty more."

"Guys! Guys!" Raj comes running up to the others. "I just came upon the greatest discover in human history! _I found pool noodles!"_

Diego smiles at the scene. "Now they're living right..."

"Sure does look nice out there," I admit.

"Hey, guys." A new voice at the door catches my attention. Sean stands there with Zahra and Lila.

"Hey. Any luck?"

"Not yet. But we found the elevator to the very top floor."

"It's Everett Rourke's office," Lila says. "The owner of the resort. We're not exactly allowed in there, but..."

"But if anyone has some kinda high-tech satellite phone, it'd be the cartoonishly rich dude," Zahra finishes.

"You guys coming?" Sean asks.

"Yeah." I set Murphy down at my feet. "I'm coming."

Sean smiles at me. "Awesome."

"Then let's get going," Lila says. "It's this way."

Grace, Aleister, and I follow, but Diego hesitates in the hall. "Actually...it looks _really_ fun out there. ...I'll catch up with you later, okay?"

I frown slightly. "...Really?"

"Yeah...it's just...I could really use a break right now."

"Oh...well, okay. Have fun."

He turns and heads the other way. I watch him go, wondering if I should follow him. Something in his manner has me a little concerned. Sean puts a hand on my shoulder.

"Forget it, Alodia. We've got work to do."

I follow the others down the hall. Murphy trots at my heels. I smile down at him.

"At least you're staying with me."

"Mrffm!" he agrees.

We reach a set of gleaming silver elevator doors at the end of a hall.

"This is it," Lila says. "The elevator up to Mr. Rourke's office."

She presses the call button. The doors slide open, and we step inside. Inside, there are only two buttons: "Lobby" and "Rourke." I press the second one, but nothing happens. It doesn't even light up.

"There's a card slot here in the panel," Aleister points out. "I think we need a keycard to get up there."

"No, you don't. You've got me." Before anyone can answer, Zahra has pried open the panel, exposing a mess of circuitry beneath. She snorts. "Who wired this amateur crap?"

She begins fiddling with the electronics inside the elevator wall. The rest of us look at each other, and back at her, stunned. I open my mouth to comment, but think better of it. The others seem to follow my lead.

"Thank you all for shutting the hell up while I work," Zahra mutters. "You wouldn't believe how much some people like hearing themselves talk."

"...You mean Craig?" Sean ventures.

"Got it in one. Aaaaaaand done." There is an electric hum and the elevator comes to life, buttons lighting. Zahra closes the panel and makes a show of dusting off her hands.

"Nice," I say. "Clearly, there's a lot I didn't know about you."

"There's still much more, Alodia. Keep your pants on."

"I am also mildly impressed," Aleister says. "I wasn't aware of your skillset, Zahra. Next, you should rewire the automatic doors to prevent any unknown outsiders from entering without our knowing."

"Solid idea," Sean agrees. "Could you get on that, Zah-"

Zahra holds up a hand. "I'm gonna stop you right there. Nobody tells me what to do." She walks out of the elevator and heads down the hall.

"Wh-where are you going?" Lila asks.

"I'm switching teams."

Sean starts to go after her, but then stops and shakes his head. "Yeah, I'm not gonna push my luck."

He punches the button and the elevator doors slide shut. The ascent is smooth and gentle. I barely realize we've moved until I hear the ding. The doors slide open and I suck in my breath.

Beyond the doors is an sprawling, sparsely decorated office. I step out onto dark marble floors, polished smooth as mirrors under my feet. Windows that stretch from marble floors to marble ceilings are the only walls, offering a breath-taking view of the island. A crystal chandelier hangs from the ceiling. Several massive marble columns stand evenly spaced throughout the room. The only other objects in the room are a glass desk, a white rolling desk chair, and a single bronze statue. Lila gently grazes the desk with her fingertips.

"I cannot believe I'm finally standing here!" she says breathlessly. "Oh my gosh, Lila, contain yourself!"

"It's so...barren," I murmur. "There's nothing here. It feels...lonely."

"I am absolutely certain it was," Aleister agrees.

"Alodia's right," Grace says sadly. "No computer, no phone...This is a dead end."

I step up to one of the windows and look out, touching the glass. Murphy seems to imitate me, bonking his tiny nose against the glass. Twenty-five stories down, I can see my classmates at play on the beach. Jake and Zahra are carving arcs of foaming white wake in the crystal blue water on jet skis.

"Seriously?" Sean says from behind me. "Where the hell did they find those?"

"Search me," I say. "They're pretty good on them, though."

Sean sighs. "Listen, Alodia. Thanks for coming along."

"Of course, Sean-"

"I'm serious. I know how easy it is to want to take a day off, to let someone else pick up the slack for once. But sometimes you have a responsibility to other people to do your share...to put in your time. So I mean it. Thanks."

I am quiet, not quite sure how to respond at first. For a moment, I feel inclined to defend the others, or at least the three who were at the shelter with me. But somehow, I don't think it would help anything.

"...You got it, Sean," I say at last.

I turn back from the window just in time to see Lila slipping something small into her back pocket. My gut twists with sudden anxiety. It feels like a warning. I frown.

"Lila, what did you just hide from us?"

"Huh?"

"What's happening?" Sean asks.

"Lila just pocketed something," I answer. "I would like to know what it is."

"That's ridiculous! I didn't find anything!"

I narrow my eyes. "And now you're lying about it."

"Alodia," Grace says placatingly, "Maybe she's telling the truth..."

I shake my head. "I know what I saw." I look up at Sean, meeting his gaze. "...Do you trust me?"

Sean looks at me for a moment, considering. Then he nods.

"Let's see what's in your pockets, Lila."

"There's nothing! I-" Sean holds out his hand expectantly. She groans and pulls out something small and silver from her back pocket and drops it into Sean's waiting palm. I squint at it.

"...A cufflink?"

"Yes. It's one of Mr. Rourke's cufflinks. He must've dropped it."

"There's a little engraving on the face," Sean points out, studying it. "Three 'S's?"

"Snakes maybe?"

Lila sighs. "I just wanted to return it to Mr. Rourke when we find him. I thought he'd be happy to get it back. Maybe happy enough to give me a promotion. That's all." She reaches to take it back, but I snatch it up and slip it into my own pocket.

"I'll make sure you're the one to give it to him."

Lila grunts and stamps her foot, pouting. "Fine. Whatever."

My attention is suddenly caught by Aleister, who is pacing in frustration. He kicks hard at the bronze statue.

"This is absurd," he mutters. "It's like the man is taunting us. How is there nothing here?!"

I can't help smirking a bit. "I guess you're not clever enough to figure this out."

Aleister smirks back. "Is that so? It seems you vastly underestimate me."

"We'll see, won't we?"

"We most certainly shall! ...Well then...if I were an overrated and highly fortunate business simpleton ensconced in an ivory tower, where would I keep my phon-" Just as he says that, he rests his hands on Rourke's desk. The glass flashes with blue-white light. I yelp.

"What the hell?!"

"The glass is a display!" Grace cries delightedly. "The desk itself is the computer!"

"How did you turn that on?"

Aleister stares at the desk in bewilderment. "...I haven't the faintest idea..."

"Good work, Aleister!" Sean claps him on the back. "See any way to call for help? I'd honestly settle for an email right now."

"...It appears to require a password."

I look at the screen. Underneath the password prompt are twelve dashes.

"Twelve letters..." I murmur.

"Any ideas?" Sean asks.

"Hmm...twelve letter words..."

After a moment's thought, I start typing.

C

Bzzt! The display buzzes and flashes red.

"'Invalid'. Well, it was worth a shot."

"Decent guess, all things considered," Sean says wryly. "We made progress, anyway. We should keep looking around the premises. Maybe we'll find the password. Or another way to contact the mainland. Let's keep moving."

The others head for the elevator. I pause by the window, my gaze caught by the others swimming along the shore. Jake has Quinn on his shoulders, Raj has Diego on his. They wave pool noodles at each other like lances. I smile a little.

"Are you coming, Alodia?" Grace asks.

"...I'll catch up."

"Well, meet us downstairs," Sean says. "...Unless you're just gonna go shred some waves with Jake and the others."

I hear an almost imperceptibly soft hiss coming from behind me. I turn to find a solid marble block risen out of the floor. I draw closer and move around to the other side. That's when I realize that the block isn't solid at all. On the other side, a slanted tray guides paperslowly down towards a narrow slat lined with gleaming metal blades.

"A paper shredder...Sean, I think the office heard you when you said the word 'shred'-" I look back over my shoulder, but the others are already gone.

I turn back to the machine. Bits of paper stuck between the blades make it look that much more like a mouth. The clear bin beneath shows that it's full of narrow strips of cross cut paper. More documents sit on the tray, just waiting for someone to press the button and send them to their doom. Among them is a small stack of folders with CONFIDENTIAL stammed across them in massive red letters. ...Something catches my eye that makes my heart stop.

Clipped to the top of one of the folders is a small picture of Sean Gayle. I snatch up the folders. There are three more underneath, each with a picture of one of my classmates. One for Estela, one for Raj, and one for Grace...

I feel a tremor throughout my whole body. ...Are we being watched? Does Rourke have something on my classmates? ...Do I really want to know...?

I hesitate a moment. Then, I carry the folders over to the desk and sit down. With trembling hands, I flip open Sean's folder.

The yellowed report inside is a single page.

Target Analysis

Clearance: Epsilon

Surname: Gayle

First: Sean

Middle: Marcus

D.O.B: 1995 May 14

Birthplace: Jacksonville, FL

Background: Gayle is the 2nd son of Hall of Famer Marcus Gayle, whose career was cut short by head injuries. Marcus then lost his fortune in a series of bad investments. Family's hopes ride on Sean.

Psychological Profile: Courageous, resilient, born leader. Already a nat'l hero, he has too much riding on his success to rock the boat.

Threat Assessment: 4

Stamped in red at the bottom of his profile is a sigil that looks like a stylized bird of some sort. Possibly an eagle. I flip through the others.

Clearance: Epsilon

Surname: Hall

First: Grace

Middle: Tamara

D.O.B: 1996 Apr 4

Birthplace: Washington, DC

Background: Daughter of Mansigh Transglobal E.V.P Blaire Hall, Grace matches her mother's brilliance in every way...because she must. Anything less is not an option.

Psychological Profile: Family pressures take their toll. Criminal record suggests a history of lashing out. Use this when necessary. CAUTION: Actions may be unpredictable.

Threat Assessment: 6

Clearance: Epsilon

Surname: Bhandarkar

First: Raj

Middle: Aditya

D.O.B: 1995 Oct 7

Birthplace: Queens, NY

Background: Business Major, but spends most of his time getting high. Reports show nothing special. (Listed IQ of 178 must be a typo.) Role remains uncertain.

Psychological Profile: Non-threat. The most danger he poses is the property damage he can do at a party. (See Sigma Chi incident, 3/7/16.)

Threat Assessment: 1

Clearance: Alpha

Surname: Montoya

First: [REDACTED]

Middle: [REDACTED]

D.O.B: January '96?

Birthplace: Colombia

Background: Montoya is [REDACTED] vanishing for years at a time. She last surfaced in the military coup at [REDACTED] She will stop at nothing to [REDACTED]

Psychological Profile: Exceptionally determined, with the skills to pull off her goal thanks to her ex-mentor [REDACTED] untimely demise.

Threat Assessment: DO NOT APPROACH!

I look over the profiles again. Each has a stylized red sigil stamp on them somewhere, but I realize that they aren't all the eagle that's on Sean's profile. In fact, they are all different. Grace's also resembles a bird, but it's position—bowed head and folded wings-makes me think waterfowl rather than sky bird. Raj and Estela's are less clear. Raj's puts me in mind of archery arrows drawn on foggy windows in winter, but...perhaps with a couple extra legs. Estela's is two lines crossed and curved in a way that resembles a creature in flight. Not quite a bird, though. ...A dragon?

I close the dossiers and sit frozen for a moment. ...I should tell them about this...Sean and Raj and Grace and Estela...but later. In private. I pull the thin pages out of the folders and stack them on top of each other, folding them neatly into quarters and tucking them into my pocket. I slip the photos into my other pocket. I compose myself and head to the elevator, letting it carry me down to the lobby.

I catch up with Sean and the others outside as they scour the premises for other facilities.

"Hey, Alodia. Find anything else in Rourke's office?"

The dossiers and photos are heavy in my pockets, but I can't bring myself to mention them yet. "No...nothing interesting."

We continue to search the exterior together. As we circle the building, we run into Jake and the others coming up from the beach.

"Oh! Hey, Jake..."

But it seems my friendly greeting isn't going to set the tone here. Sean and Jake stop in front of each other, and the others behind them halt. I have the crazy urge to start snapping my fingers West Side Story-style, but I'm not confident that would help any.

"Excuse us," Jake growls, holding Sean's gaze with his.

After a moment, Sean steps aside. As Jake and the others pass, he snorts and shakes his head. Jake stops, turning his head back just slightly.

"...What was that? You got something to say to me, Cap?"

"I try to save my breath for people I respect."

Everyone freezes, eyes on Jake, who turns back to face Sean, sneering.

"Well. I don't know _how_ I'll sleep at night without your respect."

Sean steps towards Jake, drawing himself up to his full, impressive height. I put myself in between them, pushing them apart.

"Enough! Come on, what are you doing?"

Jake pushes against my hand a little, like a dog waiting to be told, _sic 'em!_

"I'm not gonna let this guy guilt you and everyone else into following him just to soothe his ego." His voice is a low growl.

"Ego?" Sean scoffs. "Man, you're the one here only thinking about yourself!"

"Oh, my God, Sean!" Michelle cries. "Just butt out of our business!"

"You guys could have at least helped!" Grace shoots back.

"Yeah?" Craig sneers. "You manage to call for help? No? Then I guess we did as much as y'all did!"

"I've heard quite enough from the lowest common denominator, thank you!" Aleister snaps.

"I don't know what that means! You know I'm bad at math, bro!"

...I mean to stay out of it. I really do. Or at least keep the peace. But then I glance over and see Diego shrinking in distress. ...He looks like a child being reprimanded. They are making him feel ashamed, and for what? For taking a damn break? After watching over me for more than an hour until he knew I was all right...after holding my hand while Jake cleaned my wounds...wounds I got trying to protect Quinn, who almost drowned not half an hour afterwards, after she helped us all find a way out of the cave...

I whirl on Sean. "Don't act all high and mighty, okay?" I snarl. "You're not the only ones who have helped!"

"It certainly looks that way!" Aleister sneers.

"They should at least pretend to care about what's going on!" Grace agrees.

"Oh, yes! Because Aleister was _such_ a big help at the shelter! Are you forgetting _who_ had to drag you out of the flooded cave?!"

"Everyone, please!" Lila squeaks. "Let's all consider our actions-"

"Look, Jake!" Sean snaps. "I get that you basically quit on life to drink yourself stupid in a beach hammock in Central America, but I thought you were ex-military. I thought we could count on you to get us through this."

"They don't pay me _nearly_ enough! Aren't you a little old for a babysitter? I thought you were the leader around here anyway, Steve Rogers."

Jake shoves his way past Sean, glancing his shoulder. Sean scoffs.

"Sure. More cute nicknames. You know, do whatever you want, Jake. Maybe you've got nothing to go home to, but the rest of us still have a future to-"

Before I can react, Jake whips around and slugs Sean in the mouth. Sean staggers.

"Jake!" I cry.

"What? Now he's actually got something to complain about."

Sean rubs his jaw thoughtfully. "Funny. I figured a tough guy like you would hit harder." He lunges, and his fist connects with Jake's jaw.

Everyone descends into shouting. Diego grabs my arm and drags me out of the path of the skermish as Raj and Craig pull Sean and Jake apart.

"Woah! Champ!" Craig shouts. "Easy! Easy!"

"I can't get a hold on Jake!" Raj cries, frantically trying to pin the shorter man in his arms. "How is he so feisty?!"

"You don't have a damn clue, Cap!" Jake shouts, fighting Raj's hold as he's dragged away.

Sean, heading in the opposite direction, turns back long enough to shout, "At least I give a crap!"

"Good luck getting off the island without lifting a finger!" Aleister yells.

"I'd rather be stuck here forever than owe anything to people like you!" Michelle shoots back.

The two groups retreat, and suddenly Diego and I are alone in the courtyard. The silence is deafening.

"...That...could have gone better," he says at last.

"...Yeah..."

"...You okay? For a moment it looked like you were going to be the innocent bystander they crushed to get at each other."

"I'm fine. You okay?"

"...Not so much..." he admits.

I take his hand and give it a squeeze, as much for my sake as his. As I look out at the volcano rising over the jungle, as I hear the strange noises echoing in the trees and see the shadows rustling in the ferns, I suddenly feel tiny and vulnerable, like a prey animal in an open field. Diego squeezes my hand in return.

"We fenced ourselves in," he murmurs, "but somehow things got worse."

"Unless we can find a way to work together...I don't think we're ever getting out of here."


	7. Pies Make Peace

Somehow, that night, I manage to eventually fall asleep. When I wake the next morning, Murphy is curled up next to me, kneading me with his paws like a kitten. I stay beside him for a moment, rubbing behind his ears. Then, with a sigh, I push back the blankets. No sense in staying in bed. It won't fix anything.

I brush my teeth and take a shower. Before dressing, I dry myself thoroughly and change the bandage on the claw marks. They're not bleeding anymore, and there is no sign of infection. I dress and run a comb through my damp hair. I've just finished making the bed when there's a knock at the door. I go to open it, and find Diego outside.

"Hey, Allie. Ready for breakfast?"

"You know I'm always ready for breakfast." I grab my key and step outside, shutting the door behind me. "Do you think things are going to be cool in there? That fight yesterday was pretty heated..."

"Heh. You made a temperature pun."

"Oh, hush. It's a serious question."

He shrugs. "People fight all the time. How could anyone stay mad in a paradise like this?"

"...Maybe you're right."

We take the elevator down to the restaurant level. The moment I step inside, the tension rolls over me like a wave. Everyone's there, but no one is speaking. The only things on the buffet table are cold bagels and dry cereal. The laughter and banter of yesterday morning are gone. The beach crew sits on one side, with the group who went investigating on the other. Jake and Sean head their respective tables, eyeballing each other icily. Diego sighs.

"...Welp...I was wrong. Come on. Let's get something to eat."

Jake stands and heads over to the buffet table, cutting in front of me. Sean stands sharply, putting himself in Jake's path.

"And where do you think you're going?"

"Getting myself another bagel, Sergeant Buzzkill," Jake growls. "Got a problem with that?"

"Not everyone's gotten a bagel yet. Since you're not big on contributing to the team, the least you could do is wait till everyone else has had a turn."

"What are you, the breakfast police? Get out of my way."

Sean doesn't budge. "Sit. Your. Ass. Down."

"Sean!" I snap. "Did I miss an election where we voted you Supreme Leader? Because I don't know why you think you can tell people what they can and can't do! There are plenty of bagels to go around, so why don't you relax and enjoy yours instead of worrying about everyone else?"

Jake smirks. "Well, look at that. Even Princess is on my side. That's how you know you're wrong."

Sean frowns at you. "Really, Alodia? I thought you were better than this." But he steps out of the way. Jake continues towards the buffet table.

"Can I grab you a plate, Princess?"

"Sure, thanks."

"Forget it!" Sean snarls. "I'm going to go see if I can find a working radion in this place. You wanna help me, be my guest."

Michelle, Grace, and Aleister go with him as he storms out. A leaden silence settles over the rest of us. I manage to get half my bagel down before my appetite leaves me completely. I stand.

"Everything okay, Allie?"

"Yeah. Yeah. I...just need some air. You finish your breakfast."

"Yeah. Sure..."

With Murphy at my heels, I head out into the courtyard and stand for awhile, breathing in the air. The smell of saltwater mingles with the scent of the jungle's plantlife. I hug myself, trying to calm the anxious tremors running down my body.

"Alodia!" I turn to see Raj bounding over to me. "Hey, can we talk?"

"...What's up?"

"I'm not gonna mince words. I'm worried about our group. If we keep up this whole feud, we're never gonna get off this island. We need a way to come together. I think I might know how to do it. But I'm gonna need your help."

I nod. "I'm listening."

"This is going to sound kind of crazy...but we need to throw a feast."

"A...feast?"

"Look. My grandmother had this saying: Words make war...but pies make peace."

For a moment, I can only blink at him. "...Raj, that...is _genius!_ "

He grins at me. "You think so? Most people just stare at me confused when I say it."

"...How...many times have you been in this situation?"

"Oh, you know. That one time at Chi Sigma Alpha...and in my _a capella_ group...oh, and junior prom...Hoo boy, that was a doozy..." He shakes his head. "Look, the point is, I've actually got a lot of experience bringing folks together. And there's nothing that does the job like good food, strong drinks, and a lot of laughs."

"I am totally sold. So what's the plan?"

"I'll handle the cooking. I was poking around the kitchen earlier, and there is a _lot_ of good stuff in there."

"What do you need me for?"

"Come on, Alodia. What's the most important thing for a feast?"

"Uh...friendship? Family? A community coming together in unity and support?"

Raj actually facepalms. "Booze, Alodia! Really, really good booze! I need you to hit up every bar in the resort and make sure tonight's party is _stocked_!"

"Don't we have a bunch of stuff down here already?"

"Well..." He rubs the back of his head. "We've managed to put a surprisingly large dent in that already. But more importantly, you can't just serve your average pool bar swill at a feast like this. We need the top shelf stuff. The crème de la crème. ...Literally. I'd like a bottle of Creme de la Creme."

"So, you're sending me on a scavenger hunt of all the bars in the resort to get some special booze for you?"

"I knew I could count on you! Now listen, I've got a few drinks in mind that I wanna make, but I'm going to need some specific ingredients. I'm gonna need that Creme de la Creme, a bottle of McLellyn's Whiskey, and a bottle of Armand de Fleur champagne. You got that."

"Got it."

He takes my hand between his large palms and looks earnestly into my eyes. "Good luck, Alodia. The fate of the party is on your shoulders."

I head back into the hotel, aiming to check the directory on the first floor, when someone sidles up beside me.

"Hey there, buddy!" Zahra's voice is just slightly syrupy. "Heard you were going on a bar crawl."

I stare at her. "Were...were you eavesdropping on me an Raj?"

"You call it eavesdropping, I call it conveniently overhearing while hiding in a corner. To-may-to, to-mah-to. I'm in."

"...You are?"

"Look, let's just say I'm a pretty experienced drinker, okay? I've got one hell of a discerning palate. You want this to be some run-of-the-mill frat party beer run? Be my guest. But if you wanna come back with the best of the best, I'm your gal."

Just then, Craig rounds the corner, appearing in front of us.

"What's this I hear about a beer run?"

"Does anyone on this island not eavesdrop on people?!" I cry.

"Come on, Alodia. You're gonna need someone to carry all those bottles. Someone big and strong..."

"Hey!" Zahra protests. "I called going with Alodia first!"

"Yeah, well, I called it second. And everyone knows first is the worst, second is the best!"

"Who?! Who knows that?!"

I press my fingers to my temples. "I'm sorry, could we back up a moment? ...Are you two just trying to get drunk?"

"Yeeeeeeah, A-dogg! You get it!" Craig holds his fist out for a bump, but Zahra slaps his hand away.

"You really need to learn how to read tone, Craig. And yes. We're just trying to get drunk. It's hot. We're stuck on this island. And we're all probably going to get eaten by a sabertooth tiger. Can you blame us?"

"...Well, I guess when you put it like that..." I sigh. "Okay, fine. You can both tag along."

Both their expressions shift to something that suggests I've asked them to cross Mount Atropo on a tightrope.

"What?!"

"No, that's..."

They look at each other a moment and then sigh simultaneously.

"Fine," Zahra mutters. "But I still get the first sip."

"And I get to drink the most!"

I grin wickedly. "See? You two are getting along already. Seems Raj knows what he's talking about. Now come on. Let's get him what he needs."

We head through the hotel with Murphy trotting eagerly after us. Remembering the vintage wine we discovered on the first day, I lead us to the ballroom first. I throw open the ornate double doors and suddenly stop short, a strangled scream escaping my lips.

...The ballroom is gone. On the other side of the doors is a rickety catwalk over a lake of bubbling, blood-colored magma. Smoke and oppressive heat surround me, choke me, encase my body in a suffocating layer of sweat. I can just barely make out the figure of a man on the far end of the catwalk. ...A man wearing an ornately decorated lion mask...

"Wha...who...?"

He looks at me, cocking his head to the side. Then, man, magma, and catwalk dissolve in a blinding white light.

...I'm back in the hotel ballroom with Craig and Zahra. They're both staring at me.

"...What the hell was that?" I ask dazedly.

"What was what?" Zahra asks.

"You okay, Alodia? You just...totally spaced out there for a second..."

"I...I'm fine. Just got lost in my thoughts for a moment, I guess." I flash them a bright smile. "Let's go find us some alcohol!"

"This doesn't look like a bar..." Craig remarks, eyeing the wedding decorations skeptically.

"Guessing you haven't been to many fancy weddings. Rich couples go all out on nice wine and champagne."

"Alodia knows what's up. The two of us came here on the first day, and hoo boy did we find the good stuff."

"Yeah, well, where I'm from, the only thing they serve at weddings is cheap beer and moonshine."

"I've always wondered," Zahra says. "Do you actually drink it out of a jug labled XXX, or is that just a stereotype?"

"Okay, stay on target, you two. We're looking for a champagne called Armand de Fleur."

"Oooo, I've heard of that," Zahra says. "I'll give Raj credit, boy knows his booze."

Craig is already poking through the bar fridge. "And we've got a couple bottles right here!" He pulls out a few bottles and tucks them into his backpack.

"Perfect. Next let's check the re-"

"Hold your horses, Alodia," Zahra cuts in. "It's not a bar crawl unless you're actually drinking."

"You know, I don't really recall saying this was a bar crawl..."

But Zahra has already popped open a bottle and taken a sip. "Mmmm. Tastes like horrific wealth disparity."

"Gimme that!" Craig snatches the bottle from her and takes a swig. "Tastes like champagne. What's the big deal?"

"The big deal is that it's one of the finest, most flavorful champagnes in the world!" Zahra shrieks. "You are _such_ a philistine!"

"Racist much? My family's from Taiwan!"

"How about you, Alodia? Gonna drink?"

I sigh and roll my eyes, but I feel a smile playing around my mouth. "Ah, what the hell. Let's do this."

"That's what I'm talkin' 'bout, y'all!" Craig passes me the bottle, and I tip it towards him in a toast.

"Cheers!" I put it to my lips and take a good, long swallow. Bubbly sweetness rests on my tongue. I detect a hint of pear and an aftertaste of honey. "Ohhhh, wow, that is good..."

"Another! Another!" Craig cheers.

We pass the bottle around for a couple minutes. As I cast my eyes over the ballroom, the world takes a few seconds to catch up with the motion of my head.

"Ooookay, I am definitely feeling that. We should...check the next bar on our list." I stand carefully, blinking through the mild alcoholic buzz. "Just don't let me drive there."

Zahra snorts. "Come on. I know where to go next."

She leads us through the hotel until we come to a thick double door. A sign hangs on the wall nearby. I read it aloud.

"'Club Skullkid'?"

"The hell is this?"

Craig throws open the doors, and reveals a dazzling, high-end nightclub. Soft velour chairs and benches surround gleaming tables, and the whole place glows with multicolored neon lights.

"Oh, whaaaaaaaaaaaat?" Craig cries. "No one told me there was a nightclub here! Why are we not tearing this place down every night?!"

"Because I can think of no worse way to spend my time than listening to crappy EDM while watching your sweaty ass fumble around?" Zahra mutters.

"Pfft. You're just jealous cuz you don't have my moves."

Craig does what might be intended as a dance...but he looks more like a spastic bunny rabbit. Zahra rolls her eyes and wanders over to the DJ booth. She scoffs.

"What is this, like, retro night? All this equipment is from the mid-90's. Not to mention the music..."

"Come on, guys. The bar's our target. Should have plenty of cocktail supplies."

Zahra slides over to the bar and starts rummaging through bottles. "Sure does. We've got blackberry liqueur, absinthe, hot chili vodka..."

"We're looking for Creme de la Creme."

"Yup. Got some of that, too."

Craig picks up a bottle and reads the label. " 'A premiere flavored liqueur with hints of chocolate, vanilla, and a dash of cinnamon.' " He pops open the bottle and takes a chug. "Gah! So...sweet...and...creamy..."

Zahra shrieks in exasperation. "You're supposed to mix a tiny bit of it into a cocktail, you ape, not chug it like cheap beer!"

"Well, where's the warning label, huh?!"

Zahra sighs. "Just give it to me. I'll show you how it's done." She swings around the bar and starts mixing. I settle onto one of the valour couches to watch. With a flourish, she slides a tall glass of multicolored booze into Craig's beefy hand. He takes a sip.

"Oooooooooooooooh, yeah. That's good."

"It better be. There's like, six shots in there."

"There's no way I'm keeping you two sober, is there?"

"Not a chance in hell," Zahra agrees. "Want one?"

I sigh. "What the hell. You only live once, right?"

"YOLO, baby!" Craig crows. "I've got that tattooed on my butt!"

"We all remember, Craig," Zahra mutters.

"I don't! I've never seen Craig's butt!" I catch a cocktail as Zahra slides it down the bar to me and take a sip. "Mmm, delicious. And...incredibly strong."

Zahra offers me a lopsided grin. "Gotta say, Alodia. You're all right."

"Uh...thanks?" I swallow the rest of my cocktail in three gulps. "Come on. We've still gotta get that...the whiskey."

"Sure thing," Craig says, giving me a thumbs up. "After I finish this cocktail. And the one after that."

It takes us an hour to get out of the nightclub. Partially because we keep drinking awhile, but mostly because the floor has started to become tippy under my feet. Craig's backpack bulges with clinking bottles.

"Hey, guys? Is one of the island's mysteries that everything is spinning? Or is that just me?"

"Nyah! Craig's drunk!" Zahra drawls. "He's as drunk as a drunk guy who's always drunk and is like, 'Hey! Look at me! I'm drunk!'"

I snort, dissolving into giggles. She blinks at me.

"Um...I'm pretty drunk, too, aren't I."

I nod, still giggling. "You guys...you guys are...yeah...this was...yeeeeeeeeeeeah. I'm not wordsing good..."

Craig slings an arm over my shoulders. "Alodia's feelin' it, Zahra. Gotta looove this woman!"

I shake my head and give the world a few seconds to catch up. "...I think we'veit ev'ry bar in the rzzort. And we got a lot of alcohol. But we never did fin' that McLellyn's whiskey."

"Well," Zahra says. "There is one more bar."

"There is?"

"Saw it when I washgoin' ov'r the blueprints. Somethin' called the V.I.P. Lounge."

"V.I.P Lounge?" Craig says. "I didn't see anything about that in the brochure..."

"That's cuz you're not a V.I.P., Dummy. Unless it stands for Vomiting...Idiot...Poo-head..."

He snorts. "Sick burn, Z. Really got me with that one."

"Juss shut up and follow me."

She leads us through the halls until we come to a locked door with a keypad in the handle. Zahra scoffs.

"Simple one-source keypad authentication? It's like they want me to break in..."

"Are you sure that's a good idea?"

"Saaaaauuuce," Craig drawls. "It's the V.I.P. Lounge. You know they've got the best shizz in there."

"The drunker you get, Craiggers, the more you sound like your old self. Remember that time freshman year when you...when we..." Zahra trails off, frowning. "...nevermind."

"Less just get inside," I mutter.

"Yeeeeeeeeah!" Craig yells. "Let's. Break! This! Door! Down!" He rams the door with his massive shoulder, but it stays put. Zahra rolls her eyes.

"You never learn, do you, big guy?" She pries open the keypad panel, examining the wires. "Alodia, keep Craig busy. I gotta work my magic."

"Are you sure you oughta be doing that drunk?"

"Meh, what's the worst that could happen? I trip the wrong wire and 10000 volts of electricity surge through my body, leaving you idiots screaming at the charred husk that is my corpse?"

"...Craig, is she kidding? I can't tell if she's kidding."

"I can never tell with her," Craig says resignedly.

Zahra squints, focusing on the wires. A single drop of sweat trickles down her forehead as she mutters to herself.

"Okay...red to green...watch the breaker...careful...careful...aaaand..." There is a spark, and the doors slide open. "Aw, yeah! Slap my ass and call me Snape, 'cause I just worked some magic!"

My drunk brain won't let me hold a straight face. I break down in a fit of ungraceful giggles. Zahra glares at me.

"Tell anyone I said that, I will kill you both."

I bite my cheek and nod, but I can still feel the smile tugging at my mouth.

The V.I.P Lounge lives up to its name. From the guilded marble fountain at the center of the room to the fancy gold curtains to the LCD screens and the glass case behind the bar that displays top-shelf alcohol.

I whistle, going to sit down on one of the couches. Murphy hops up beside me and settles onto my lap. "Good call, Zahra. This was totally worth it."

"Uh, duh! Let's see what's this places got!" She steps towards the bar, but ends tripping over a chair and sprawling onto a couch. "On second thought...Imma juss lie here for a li'l while. If someone could just pour a drink into my mouth, that'd be swell..."

Craig makes it over to the bar. "Lessee what they got here. Some nice-ass vodka...like a crystal ball full of gin...and down in the fridge..." He lets out a whoop. "A cheese tray! Oh hells yeah, they've got a cheese tray!"

"Wait, Craig, you don't know how old it is. Maybe you should-" I stop when I hear him gulping noisily. "...Never mind."

"Mmm...colby-jack."

"Don't bother, Alodia. Craig's a human garbage disposal. One time freshman year, he ate a candy bar he'd dropped in a public hot tub."

"The water's hot!" Craig retorts. "That means it's sterile!"

Zahra balks, sputtering for a moment. "Who taught you science?!" she finally shrieks.

"So...you guys knew each other freshman year?"

Instantly, there is a palpable shift in the mood in the room. Zahra and Craig glance uneasily at each other.

"We...uh...well...you know..."

"I mean...there was..."

I look between the two of them, putting two and two together.

"Wait...were you two a couple?"

"What?!" Craig yelps. "No! No no no! Definitely not! What a crazy thing to say!"

Zahra rolls her eyes. "Oh my god, Craig. Don't have a hernia. Yeah, we hooked up a few times. What's the big deal?"

"I thought you didn't want anyone to know."

"Yeah, well, maybe sometimes I just don't have the energy to lie about it."

"Huh. I gotta admit, I have a hard time picturing you two together."

"Yeah, well," Zahra sighs, "we were different people back then, just two dorky freshmen with no idea what to do...stuck in the same hall..."

Craig sits down next to Zahra, handing her a scotch on the rocks. They tap their glasses together.

"You had that long blonde ponytail, remember? And you always wore that nerdy pony sweater."

"Yeah, well, you were a total dork. You had glasses and a bowlcut and all you ever talked about was World of Warcraft..."

"Please! Like you didn't totally make a character just to we could raid Scholomance together."

"...I forgot all about that," Zahra admits softly. "We wasted so many hours together..."

"Yeah..."

She scowls. "But then your stupid football team started winning, and you and Sean became kings of the school. And all you wanted to do was go to frat parties with perky little cheerleaders."

"You coulda come with me, you know," Craig says sullenly. "But no. You just wanted to hang out with those creepy hackers in the CS department."

"At least they listened to me. They got what I had to say." She sighs deeply. "...You think our Warcraft characters still exist? Just waiting around on some dusty server, remembering the good times?"

"They're probably pretty lonely."

They sit in silence for a long time. I curl up on a couch and watch their faces until Zahra stands up and scrubs at her eyes with the back of her hand.

"Sun's setting," she mutters. "We should probably get back to Raj."

"Yeah," Craig agrees, getting to his feet. "Time to go."

I stand as well. "Hang on a sec. Let's see if we can find that whiskey Raj wanted." I make my way over to the shelf, scanning the labels. "Here it is. McLellyn's."

I grab a couple of bottles and stuff them into Craig's backpack. I am zipping it up when something catches my eye.

"Huh...that's weird..."

"What's up?"

I pick up a half-full glass of whiskey sitting on the bar on top of a small paper napkin.

"Everything else is neatly put away. What's this doing here? It's like someone was here after the bar closed. Just...having a drink by themselves." I take an experimental sip. "...Unless this is incredibly weak whiskey, it was on the rocks...but the rocks melted."

Murphy, sitting on one of the stools, puts his paws up on the bar, raises his hackles, and growls at the glass.

"Spooky!" Zahra drawls. "Maybe it was a ghoooooooooost!"

"There's something written on a piece of paper here..." I pick it up and squint at it. " 'Project Hermes activation codes. Utilizes satellite uplink at the L.H.O.'...And then a bunch of random numbers and letters. Anyone know what this means?"

"No idea. Now come on. Let's get out of here before it gets sentimental in here again."

I snort. "Yeah. I thought Diego was a sappy drunk."

I split off from Zahra and Craig and make my way to the kitchen, Craig's backpack on my shoulders. The heavy bottles clink loudly as I walk. As soon as I enter the kitchen, I am nearly overwhelmed by a dozen intoxicating smells. I inhale deeply.

"Oh, my God! Raj, it smells delicious! What are you making here?"

Raj pops up from behind the counter, wiping his hands on his apron.

"There's kahlua pork on the grill, fries in the fryer, oysters are ready to go, and the samosas are stuffed and spiced."

Murphy yips excitedly and scampers around the kitchen, greedily licking scraps off the floor.

"Slow down, fella. You don't want to get sick before the feast! Here." I hold out the bag to Raj. "Your booze, oh master chef."

Raj comes to take the bag. "Tell me you got the good stuff." He opens the bag and looks through its contents. "All right, Alodia! You got everything!"

"I take my job as booze brigadier very seriously."

"I knew I was right to count on you!" He sniffs the air curiously, leaning forward. He grins. "You sample the goods on your way back?"

"Not on the way back," I say with a syrupy grin. "But I might've had a sip. Or two. Or three. ...Looks like you've got things handled down here, though."

"Well, I had some help."

He nods at a spot behind me. I look over my shoulder and see Quinn vigorously stirring something in a bowl.

"Quinn!"

"Yeah. She offered to help. She's an amazing cook."

"Nah, I've just been following instructions. This feast is all Raj."

Raj grins. "Aw, thanks. Now, I'm going to work on the set-up out by the pool. Everything's on a timer, so don't worry about a thing, Quinn. You just keep on with what you're doing, and I'll be back in a bit."

He starts to leave, then pauses by the door. "Hey...Alodia. You're keeping track of all the crazy stuff on this island, aren't you?"

"Uh...kinda, I guess..."

"Maybe this isn't a big deal, but I did find one weird thing in the kitchen." He holds out a frying pan. "All the other frying pans are normal. But this one had a...symbol on it..."

I take the pan and examine the symbol etched into the bottom. My stomach does a flip-flop. Still heady from my multiple cocktails, I can't be sure...but I think I've seen it before. Crude archery arrows with a couple extra legs...

"I don't know why," Raj says, "But something about that symbol...it really stands out to me. Feels important for some weird reason. Like it's calling out to me. ...I sound crazy, don't I?"

"Yeah..." I admit. "But everything about this island is crazy." I pull my phone out of my pocket and snap a quick picture.

Raj chuckles. "Touche. You see anything else like that, you'll let me know?"

"Sure thing."

He heads out. I slip my phone back in my pocket and turn to Quinn.

"How's it going here?"

"Great! I'm working on dessert now." She gestures in front of her, to the trays of fluffy cupcakes lining the countertop. "Wanna stick around and help? I could always use an extra pair of hands."

"Count me in!" I say eagerly. "Though...I should warn you, I'm a little drunk."

She giggles. "I don't need you sober to frost cupcakes."

She smiles sweetly at me, blue eyes sparkling. Her cheeks are high with color from the heat in the kitchen. For a moment, I can only look back with what feels like a very goofy smile on my face. She tips her head at me.

"Just gonna stand there staring?" She pats the counter beside her. "Come around to my side."

I don't hesitate to do as she tells me. I look over the trays of cupcakes, trying to count them, and giving up at twenty.

"Think we've got enough?"

"Well, at this rate, we've got four apiece."

I shake my head with a grin. "Except I'm a six-cupcake kinda gal."

She laughs. "Well, I've always said there are only two certain truths in this world. We're all gonna die, and you can never have too many cupcakes."

"Kind of a good-news, bad news kind of scenario, huh?"

"Exactly. Well, I've got enough batter for another dozen or so. But in the meantime, it's time for the most important part of baking any cupcakes."

"The eating?"

"...Okay, the _second_ most important part. The frosting! What do you think we should go with?"

"Vanilla. No question."

"Oh, interesting. I never pegged you for the traditional type."

"What can I say? I like my burgers warm, my drinks cold, and my cupcakes vanilla."

"Well, you're in luck. This place has the fanciest, creamiest, most incredible vanilla frosting I've ever tasted."

She opens the cabinet and takes out two jars of frosting. The two of us get to work, using rubber spatulas to smooth the soft white frosting over the rounded tops of the cupcakes. Quinn applies the frosting with a practiced hand, creating elegant mounds.

"You bake a lot?"

"I used to when I was younger. My mom and I were home a lot, so we used to spend the whole day in the kitchen, whipping up pies and souffles and gigantic trays of cupcakes." She smiles down at the cupcake she's frosting. "My dad would come home from work, and he'd pretend like he was so flustered every time. 'Darn it, you two! Where's my steak and potatoes! A man can't live on cupcakes alone!' ...Then when we weren't looking, he'd stuff himself silly."

"Sounds like you had a pretty great childhood."

"...Yeah...parts of it were..."

I apply the last stroke to my half of the cupcake pile and turn to her with a grin. "So...does the Frosting Assistant get a free sample?"

"Only because you were so cute when you asked."

She hands me the cupcake she has just finished. I take a large bite. Fluffy sweetness fills my senses. The frosting melts across my tongue, blending with the soft, warm cake into a mush that is just sweet enough without being overpowering. I push the mush against the roof of my mouth with my tongue, savoring it before it dissolves and slides down my throat.

"That...might just be the best cupcake I've ever eaten."

"Might be? Oh, no. That was _definitely_ the best cupcake you've ever eaten."

I laugh. "Okay, okay. If we had internet here, I would totally write Quinn's Cupcakes a five-star review."

"When I was a kid, I dreamed of opening my own bakery. It was going to be called For Goodness Cake, and we'd serve nothing but cupcakes."

"And would you personally bake every single one?"

"For you? Absolutely." She turns to me with a smile. "Thank you for helping, Alodia. This was fun."

Her smile makes me feel dreamy. "...Yeah...yeah, it was."

Our eyes lock. For a moment, a delicate silence hangs over us. ...I realize what's about to happen only seconds before it does. I capture her open lips with mine, tracing the inside of her mouth with my vanilla-coated tongue. She winds her arms around me, slipping her hands under my shirt. I press forward, sliding her up onto the counter. My hand creeps under her shirt, drifting up to cup her breast. She moans softly against my mouth and I feel her legs wrap around me, pulling my hips against hers. I bite her lower lip gently, then let my mouth journey down her neck towards her collarbone. She arches her head back, grinding her hips against me.

"Oh, God...Alodia..."

"...Quinn..."

We're moving faster now as the hunger takes us. She tugs off my shirt and reaches under my bra to grip my breast. I unbotton her blouse and pull it open. Her mouth meets mine again. I slip the button of her shorts out of the buttonhole and tug down the zipper.

"What if someone sees us?" I murmur against her lips. Even as I ask the question, I'm slipping my hand into her shorts.

"I don't care," she answers, gasping as my hand starts to move against her pubis. Her hips rise. "Oh, god...don't stop..."

"Not a chance in hell." I move faster, grinning as she moans with pleasure.

There's a bang as the door swings open and Raj sweeps back in.

"Hey, guys. Just wanted to see how it was-" He cuts himself off with a yelp when he sees us. "Oh! Oh God! I didn't realize you two were...I didn't mean to... _sorry!_ "

He turns and flees, leaving me and Quinn frozen.

From just outside, we hear Raj call, "I know you're supposed to cook with love, but I don't think they meant it so literally!"

Quinn and I lock eyes and dissolve into giggles. I ease my hand out of her shorts and help her off the counter.

"Oh, god...did you see his face?"

"I've never seen him so flustered!" She collapses against me, weak with laughter.

"We...should probably catch up with him...see if he needs any help with the party..."

"Yeah...we should..." She slides one hand down the back of my jeans and cups my buttock. "...in a few minutes..."

I grin, running my hands along her ribs. That's when I catch sight of the long, pale scar running the length of the right side of her torso. I pause for a moment, trailing my fingers along it.

When she realizes what I'm touching, she pulls back slightly, averting her eyes.  
"...Oh...that...it's weird, huh?"

I grin wryly. "No weirder than the ones I'm gonna have," I say, touching the bandage over the claw wounds on my own ribs. "...How did you get it?"

"Surgery. I was in the hospital a lot growing up. But I'm better than ever now."

Still, she tugs her blouse closed, hastily doing up the buttons.

"It's nothing to be embarrassed about."

"Oh, I'm not embarrassed. Actually, I kinda like it. It reminds me how, no matter what, I'm not going to let anything stop me from living my life."

I smile at her. "...It's beautiful, Quinn. Really, it is."

"...You're beautiful, Alodia. ...Should we go catch up with Raj? Or...?" Her eyes twinkle mischeivously. She slips one button back open.

I can still feel desire swirling in my belly, still feel fluttering between my legs. But another desire is overpowering it. I pull her into my arms, cradling her head against my shoulder.

"...Let's stay like this. Just for a few minutes."

As evening falls, Raj calls us all out to the pool. A party playlists blasts out of the speakers, and tiki torches set up around the pool flicker with a beautiful ambient light. Two long tables have been pushed together and draped with a floral-printed oil tablecloth. And the length of the table is filled with a magnificant feast. I can smell sizzling roast pork, savory sauces, juicy fruits, and sweet desserts.

"Holy crap!" I cry. "I thought it smelled good in the kitchen!"

Diego laughs. "Allie, you're drooling."

"Can I eat it all now? Please?"

Raj bounds over to us, grinning like a maniac. "I can't throw a ball or fly a plane, but you'd better believe I can cook a mean feast."

I put my hands on his shoulders. "Eat. Now. Please."

"Have a seat, everyone, and dig in."

Diego and I make our way to the table, where most everyone is already seated. I slide into a seat beside Grace. I glance around the table, and my heart sinks a little as I realize that except for Diego and I, the table is still split with Jake's group on one side and Sean's on the other. Still, as we start in on the feast, tensions on our end of the table start to thaw.

"Ohhhh, goodness," Grace sighs happily. "These coconut shrimp are divine."

"You should try the pork," Michelle says. "Raj really outdid himself."

I murmur my agreement around a mouthful of cinnamon-dusted Caribbean fruit salad. I glance down at the other end of the table, where Sean and Jake sit across from each other. It seems that the closer it gets to that end of the table, the more tension remains.

"Pass the fries," Sean demands.

"Grab 'em yourself," Jake shoots back.

I look around for Raj, hoping he didn't hear that. But I don't see him. Then suddenly, he reappears, pushing a cart filled with drinks in a variety of glasses. As he makes his way around the table, placing one in front of each of us, I realize that no two people have been given the same drink. In front of me is something red in a champagne flute, topped with cherries and blackberries. Diego has something dark in a sugared martini glass.

Aleister eyes the greenish substance in his brandy glass warily. "Dare I ask what is happening here?"

"I have brought every single person a signature drink!" Raj replies. "One that I think is right for just them. Alodia found all the ingredients."

"With a little help from some friends," Zahra adds.

"Can we drink now?" Craig asks. "I wanna drink!"

"Dude, how?" Zahra groans. "It's taking every ounce of willpower I have not to yuke on the floor."

"We can drink in a sec," Raj promises. "But first, let me make a toast. Right now, we're sitting at this table, and every single one of us is holding a completely different drink. That's not just because I like mixing up cocktails. It's also a pretty good metaphor. When you look at us from a distance, we all look pretty different. And on the surface, we are. Jocks and nerds, hackers and bullies...well, you'd think none of us have anything in common."

"...Who's the bully?" Craig asks.

Raj ignores him. "But that's just the surface, just the glass. Because deep inside, these drinks all have a lot in common. They're delicious. They're full of alcohol. And they were all made for one important purpose: to bring us together again.

"We all want to get off this island. We all want to get back to our homes, our families, our lives. But we're never going to accomplish that unless we can overcome our superficial difference and work together as a group. The fact is, everyone here has a role to play. Some of us are natural leaders, confident and assertive. Others are rebels, who test boundaries and find new solutions. Some of us are quiet, studying the way the world works. Others are loud and strong and they keep us all safe. And some of us...well, some of us are insanely cute blue foxes with crazy ice powers."

Murphy trills happily from my lap. I hold up a piece of pork for him, which he eagerly snaps up.

"If we keep fighting," Raj continues, "if we keep focusing on our differences, we're going to tear each other apart. But if we come together, if we focus on what we have in common, we can figure this mystery out. We can get off this island. And we can go home with a memory of the most amazing adventure of our lives. So what do you guys say? Can we come together for a toast?"

The table is quiet for a moment. Then, Sean raises his glass towards Jake.

"...To coming together."

Jake is still for a moment. Then, he raises his own glass and taps it against Sean's.

"...To getting back home."

I raise my own glass. "To Raj!"

He grins at me. "Aww, thanks, Alodia."

All together, we raise our glasses and drink.

"Thank you for putting this together, Raj," Sean says. "We needed it."

"Yeah," Jake agrees. "This...this was nice."

At last, all the tension that has gripped our group since last night finally dissolves. We're as lighthearted and jovial as on that first morning, sharing stories and telling jokes. Soon, we begin discussing the events of the day.

"So, Shooter, any luck radioing for help?"

"Not so much," Sean admits. "Every radio signal I try just brings back static. It's like we're trapped in some kind of communication bubble."

"It's clear this island is cut off from traditional communication channels. We'd need something more sophisticated."

"Grace and I believe a satellite uplink could be a strong enough signal to get through the interference," Aleister says.

"Wait...did you say a satellite uplink?" I ask. "I saw a note about that earlier today in the V.I.P. Lounge. It said there was a satellite uplink at some place called the L.H.O."

"L.H.O..." Lila repeats thoughtfully. Then, she gasps. "The La Huerta Observatory! That does make sense. The Observatory is a state-of-the-art facility, with direct contact to Mr. Rourke's satellite relay. ...But we still don't know where the observatory is..."

"Uh..." Jake puts up a hand. "Would this be a good time to mention that when I was jet-skiing yesterday, I saw a big domed building with a giant telescope? Maybe seven miles north of here, up high on the slopes of the volcano."

Stunned silence descends over the table. Diego finally breaks it.

"...I think we just figured out what we need to do next."

The mood shifts after we realize our next move. But though the festive atmosphere dies down, the determination and purpose in the group now is invigorating. We all agree to get some rest and regroup in the morning to come up with a plan. Before going to bed, I help Raj wrap up the leftovers and put them into the fridge. Yawning, he suggests we leave the dishes until morning, but once he's gone, I start loading the dishes into the kitchen's three industrial dishwashers. Murphy finds a dry corner of the kitchen to curl up in and take a nap.

"Hey. Need a hand?"

I look up and find Sean standing in the door of the kitchen, smiling at me. I smile back.

"Wouldn't say no."

He comes over and picks up a plate, using the knife and fork to scrape the remains into the garbage disposal.

"Seems like this could have waited until morning. You must be exhausted."

I shrug. "I can't leave dirty dishes in the sink. It's like a pathological condition. Just ask Diego what I nightmare I am about dishes in our apartment. I can leave dirty dishes in the dishwasher, but if there are any in the sink, then I am probably seriously ill."

He laughs. "Duly noted. If I ever visit your apartment and find dirty dishes in the sink, I'll call an ambulance."

I snort, rinsing out a bowl before tucking it into the dishwasher. Sean is quiet for a moment.

"...Listen, Alodia...I'm sorry about what I said earlier."

"...What did you say earlier?"

"At breakfast. When you told me to let Jake get a bagel and I said I thought you were better than that. I'm sorry for that. And all it implied."

"...Oh. Well, I accept you're apology. But I was never really angry about that."

"No...I kinda gathered you were angry with me before you accused me of acting like I was elected Supreme Leader."

"That...might have been a little harsh of me."

"Well, I was probably overreacting. ...Something about Jake seems to put my teeth on edge."

"You have been pretty hard on him. ...And by extension, anyone who associated with him. That's why I was angry with you. You may have been directing your anger at Jake yesterday, but you were implicity yelling at my best friend, too."

"...And mine."

"Well, Craig might have deserved it," I admit. "...But Diego didn't, all right? And neither did Quinn, or Jake for that matter. ...Quinn almost drowned before we got out of that shelter. Would you really fault her for wanting to relax and forget for a little while?"

"I suppose not..."

"And for all you accuse him of lying around and not helping, I don't think any of us would have left that shelter alive if not for Jake."

"...Alodia..."

"I know he comes across all gruff and misanthropic, but I think there is more to Jake than you give him credit for."

"What makes you say that?"

I pause for a moment, considering the question. Finally, I shrug. "People are complicated, Sean. There is more to most people than what meets the eye. Look...I've known a lot of people who put up fronts. Goofy fronts, grumpy fronts, even kind fronts. ...Or brave, noble fronts. First impressions are rarely the whole truth of a person."

Sean is silent for a long moment. "...So...what's your story, Alodia?"

"...My story?"

"...I've seen you on campus, you know. I've noticed you."

"...You have?"

"Yeah. ...I remember when I first saw you. Last fall, third game of the season. I was warming up on the field, and you were with the dance team, setting up a table on the sidelines."

"Right...the dance team decided to sell bratwurst at the football games last fall as a fundraiser."

"Yeah. ...And you were showing off some pretty impressive moves. I remember wondering why you weren't in a cheerleading uniform."

I make a face. "Because all I would be doing then is cheering on the football team on the sidelines. I'd rather be center stage or competing myself."

He chuckles. "Hey, no disrespect. You probably deserve to be center stage."

"...So...you actually noticed me?"

"Yeah. ...And then I realized you were in my European history class."

"Well, I am a history major."

"I know. ...Alodia Chandler. History major, member of the dance team, and best friend of one Diego Ortiz Soto."

"Those are my basic stats, yes."

"Yeah, that's what I could find out by casually asking around."

"...I'm embarrassed to admit that I didn't really know who you were before this trip..."

"Hey, I'm not mad or hurt. ...A little impressed, I admit..."

"...Yeah. I've since managed to gather that you're the star of the school. I...guess I didn't really have much reason to notice the football players..."

"So, who do you tend to notice?"

"Um...I don't know...people who put themselves in front of me, I guess." I shrug. "...That probably makes me sound pretty self-centered, but...my world is pretty small. I don't actively push people away or anything, and people seem to like me. But getting close to me takes time. ...The easiest way to make friends with me is to get thrown in a metaphorical jar with me and shaken up."

"Sounds like an easy way to become your enemy, too."

"Well, yeah." I waggle my eyebrows at him. "That's a risk you take if you decide to throw yourself into my jar."

"Well...at least it sounds like getting stuck on this island might work to my advantage in one way. If I actually have an opportunity to get a little closer to you." At my startled glance, he seems to realize what he just said. He clears his throat. "I mean...get to know you better."

"Yeah..."

He is silent for a long moment.

"...Maybe that's why I got so worked up over Jake."

"What's why?"

"Jealousy. I see now he's put himself in front of you. Got himself noticed. Guiding you through the shelter...saving you from the exploding plane...basically being your hero..."

"Does that idea appeal to you? Because frankly, I'm not hoping to meet another sabertooth tiger or exploding plane..."

"No, Alodia. I'm not wishing any danger on you. That's the last thing I want."

"...You don't have to save me from anything to get yourself noticed. I'm noticing you now."

He grins. "As I save you from mental strife at the thought of a sink full of dirty dishes."

"Okay, I admit that's pretty heroic."

"...Alodia...when all this is over...when we get home...I'd like to see about taking you out sometime."

It's my turn to be silent for awhile. "...We'll see, okay, Sean?" I say at last. "...I know it wasn't that long ago that you and Michelle broke up."

"...True..."

"And in the meantime, we've got to think about getting off this island. But...when this is all over, and we're back home..." I smile at him. "I'm guessing I won't mind if you take me out sometime."

We finish the dishes and ride the elevator together up to the penthouse floor. We say goodnight and head into our rooms. Murphy follows at my heels, immediately jumping up onto my bed. Between the food, drinks, and the dizzying conversation with Sean over the dishes, I am surprised by my ability to shower, put on pajamas, and brush my teeth. But there is one more thing that I still manage to do before dropping off.

I pull out my phone and load up the picture I took of the frying pan Raj showed me. Then I pull out the dossiers I had hidden under my mattress. When I look at Raj's page, my heart begins to pound.

...The sigal stamped on his page is the same that was on the frying pan.

I turn my eyes towards the window. Suddenly, I feel exposed. Vulnerable. I leap out of bed and yank the curtains closed, but the feeling does not subside. Somehow, I feel certain that someone or something is out there, watching me.


	8. Heroes

_The autumn night air is crisp and cold, but the screaming, cheering crowds flooding the bleachers on either side of the Hartfeld football field keep me warm. Under the bright stadium lights, players in Hartfeld red and Greenfield green line up on the field. Somehow, I can hear the voice of one player, even over the crowd, even from such a distance._

 _Number 5, Sean Gayle, calls out to his team. "Omaha! Ninety-six double!"_

 _I know where I am. I know when I am. It's the weekend of freshman orientation. Diego is beside me in the crowd, cheering at the top of his voice._

 _"Oh, man! If every game around here ends like an inspirational sports movie, I might actually have to keep showing up!"_

 _"I have no idea what's going on!" I shout back. But the energy is infectious, and I scream deliriously with the rest of the crowd. There are only seconds remaining on the clock._

 _Freshman Sean Gayle surveys the defense, and taps the shoulder of his left tackle, another freshman._

 _"Watch the weak side!" His voice floats up to me from the field. "Linebacker's on a delayed blitz!"_

 _Number 68, Craig Hsiao, nods. "I see him." I can hear him just as clearly._

 _Sean positions himself over the ball. "Hut-hut...hut!"_

 _Massive bodies collide on the field like forces of nature. Gayle sprints left. A green-clad player lunges for him. And then another._

 _"Dammit, there's two of them!"_

 _"I can block them both!" Hsiao says. "Follow me!" With a roar, he pancakes the two Greenfield players into each other. A cheer rises from the crowd. Two faces among the spectators catch my eye. A beautiful Asian girl with blonde hair, and a heavy set Indian kid in a "freshly baked" t-shirt._

 _"Ha!" Hsiao crows. "Told ya, I—Sean?"_

 _Gayle has already run the other way, totally on his own. He plows through two Greenfield player and leaps towards the goal line, only to be tackled by another man in green._

 _"Come find me, Alodia," Diego murmurs._

 _...Hearing my full first name in Diego's voice shatters the illusion like a mirror. I turn towards him, but he's gone. ...Everyone's gone. The spectators, the players, the cheerleaders...the only person beside me in the suddenly silent stadium is..._

 _"...Estela?"_

 _She meets my gaze. "...Come find me, Alodia."_

 _The stadium dissolves. I'm back in the rainforests of La Huerta. I hear a furious cry, and look up to see Estela on the path before me. Vines wrap around her and drag her back into the darkness._

 _"Estela!" I rush after her, but something stops me. A massive paw comes to rest on my shoulder. My heart drops into my stomach. Trembling, I dare to turn around._

 _The sabertooth roars, breathing rotten-meat smell into my face. It raises a paw, claws unsheathed._

I wake with a start, sweating through my clothes and bedsheets. There is still a paw on my shoulder, but this one is small and blue. Murphy whines, looking concerned. I stroke his head.

"It's okay. ...Just a dream...I think..." I prop myself up on my elbow, noting the damp spots on the sheets and pillowcase. "...I might need to find some fresh sheets though..."

Murphy nuzzles my neck with his little nose. A chill eminates from his silky fur. It is soothing somehow, and I feel my pulse slow to normal. I slide out of bed and go to the window, pushing back the curtain just a bit.

It's still dark outside, with just a faint orange blush on the horizon. Estela has been gone for almost two days now. I wonder if she's all right out there.

Murphy jumps off the bed and comes over to nuzzle my bare legs. I scoop him up in my arms. "...I don't think I'm getting back to sleep any time soon after that dream. Feel like a walk?"

"Mmrff!" he says.

I'm only half awake as we wander the halls. I'm not even entirely sure where my feet are carrying me. Then I hear rustling. I trace the sound to a suite door that stands slightly ajar. Cautiously, I peer through the crack.

"...Sean?"

He looks up from where he stands at the foot of the bed. Lying in front of him is a backpack, bulging with supplies. He meets my eyes.

"...Hey."

I set Murphy down, eyeing the backpack suspiciously. "Where are you going at this hour? I'm guessing you're not hitting the gym."

He looks away. "...I'm going to the Observatory, Alodia. To see if we can call for help with the satellite uplink. And I'm going alone. I was hoping to head out before anyone could stop me."

"Alone?" I am fully awake in an instant. "But why?"

"I don't want anybody else getting hurt out there. Better to just...get this done myself."

He slings the bag over his shoulder and tries to pass me. But I plant myself firmly in his way. He stands close. I have to crane my neck to meet his eyes.

"I can't let you do this alone, Sean. You don't need to be some knight in shining armor."

He steps back, looking wounded. "Is that what you think this is about?"

"...I kinda think it's what you're about, Sean."

He purses his lips. "Didn't realize that's how you saw me," he says coldly. "...This is just how I was raised, Alodia. When something's the right thing to do, I do it."

"And you think running off on your own is the right thing to do here? Just yesterday, you were pissed off because no one was doing their part. And now you're trying to take the whole load yourself? Why wouldn't you let people help if they want to?"

He is silent. He moves over to the window, looking out at Mount Atropo, silhouetted against a sky that warms slowly as the sun rises over the horizon. The Observatory is waiting out there somewhere. Finally, Sean sighs.

"Okay, Alodia. You can call the play."

By the time I change clothes and we gather everyone outside the grand entrance, the sun has risen. I look around at the circle of sleepy, bleary faces.

"This is way too early to be up after a meal like last night," Craig says with a yawn.

"I need at least fourteen to eighteen more hours of sleep before I'm out of this food coma," Raj agrees.

Zahra moans, clutching her head. "So either I'm incredibly hungover, or I'm dying. One of the two. Total coin toss."

"Guys, I know it's early, guys, but we've got a big day ahead." I take a deep breath. "Last night, we pieced together that the Observatory has a satellite uplink."

"One that's strong enough to get through whatever interference is keeping us from calling for rescue."

"I know we voted to stay put on the resort instead of looking around aimlessly for a way off the island, but now we've got a destination. And it's not far."

"Well, it's about seven miles away," Lila clarifies. "Through the rainforest, over a mountain pass, and then up the side of the volcano. So about four or five hours."

"Honestly," I say. "This is going to be extremely dangerous. We've been over the risks. Anybody who goes should know what they're getting into."

"Alodia!" Lila scolds me. "Are you trying to frighten everyone?"

"I'm not going to lie to my friends," I snap back.

"Alodia's right," Sean says. "It's safer for everyone here. If I go now, I can get back before nightfall. We really don't need more than one person to go."

Zahra snorts. "Do you even know how to operate a satellite uplink?"

"Uh...do you?"

"I'll let the FBI answer that for ya. I'm coming. Otherwise, it's a waste of damn time."

"I'll go, too," Grace says.

"You will?" Aleister asks.

"I interned at a Hawaiian observatory sophomore year. I might be able to help you find your way around."

Sean frowns. "Grace, are you sure?"

"Yeah, she's sure!" Craig says. "And I'm coming too."

"Since when do you want to help get out of here?" Diego asks.

"Since my bro Sean decided on this craziness!" Craig looks at Sean with determination in his eyes. "If you're putting your life on the line, I'll be there clearing the way. Always, dude."

Sean smiles at that. "...Thanks, man."

"Well, then I guess I'm going," Michelle says.

"Really?" I say. "Great! We'll be glad to have you. I know you'll be a big help."

She rolls her eyes. "Sarcasm isn't clever, Alodia, I'll-" she pauses. "Wait...were you serious?"

"Yeah. You seemed to know what you were doing when you mixed that saline substitute."

"...Well...I am a pre-med. ...Thanks."

Sean doesn't look so certain. "...You sure you don't wanna hang back?"

Michelle glares at Sean. "Alodia believes in me. Why can't you?"

"Well, it looks like we have our group!" Lila says in her usual chipper tone. "Excellent! Everyone gather your things! We'll leave in five minutes!"

She skips off, and Zahra sidles up to me.

"Yo," she says flatly. "Ditch the hummingbird."

"What?"

"Lila. I don't want her to come with us. I don't trust her. She worships Rourke and his whole company. Whatever happened here, it's bad news for them. If she has to choose between us and him, guess who she picks. Besides. She's so...happy."

"...So?"

"No one is that happy naturally, Alodia. No one."

"...What do I tell her?"

"As if I care."

Lila skips back over to us, carrying a bag.

"Hiya, guys! All set?"

I take a deep breath. "Lila, I need you to stay behind with the others."

Lila blinks at me. "What? Why?"

My mind races. "I need you to figure out Rourke's password."

"...Rourke's password?"

"At the desk in his office. Nobody has any idea what it is."

"You're the only resort employee here. You might be the only one who can figure it out."

She looks thoughtful for a moment, and then her expression brightens. "Hey...hey, yeah! Maybe I can! I'll go work on that!"

She immediately turns and scurries inside. I exhale with relief.

"You really think she can guess the password?" Zahra asks.

"I don't think anyone's figuring out that password any time soon."

We all scatter to gather supplies. In thirty minutes, we regroup to exchange goodbyes with those staying behind. Diego embraces me tightly.

"I...know I wouldn't be much help, but...I feel like I should be going with you," he admits. "Or better yet, that you should be staying behind with me. ...You're still injured."

"I'm fine. I won't let them push me too hard. Besides...Sean needs my help. ...I think needing to keep pace with me will stop _him_ from pushing himself or the others too hard. We'll be back before you know it. Just sit tight, okay?"

"...Yeah..." He sighs and lets me go. "...Be careful, okay...?"

"I will, _mi hermano_. _Te quiero."_

" _Te quiero, mi hermana."_

I pull back and ruffle his hair. He lightly swats my hand away, grinning.

Raj hands Sean a stuffed backpack. "I packed a bunch of leftovers for you guys to remember me by."

Sean grins wryly. "We're gonna be gone for ten hours, dude."

"Exactly."

Aleister approaches Grace and shifts awkwardly in front of her.

"Um..." He clears his throat. "Grace...don't...don't perish."

Grace smiles sweetly. "Okay, Aleister. I'll try not to perish."

With the speed of a striking snake, she reaches out and traps Aleister in a tight embrace. Her head just barely comes up to his chest. He tentatively pats her head.

"Um...thank you for the embrace..."

As I watch them with a smile, I feel a hand on my arm. I turn to find Quinn smiling at me.

"Be careful out there, Alodia. Okay? You can't just leave me where things left off."

"Maybe we can pick it up again when we're rescued."

"I'd like that."

"Do me a favor, though. Look after Diego while I'm gone? Don't let him worry too much."

"I will keep him calm. I promise."

On a nearby bench, Jake lies on his back, nursing his hangover with a cup of black coffee. He raises it in a salute.

"Good luck not getting yourselves killed."

Murphy makes an indignant noise. A sparkle of ice shoots from beneath his little teeth and freezes Jake's coffee solid, just as he's about to take a sip.

"Hey!" Jake glares down at the fox. "Jokes on you, ya little smurf! I like my coffee iced!"

I chuckle to myself, wandering over to Sean, who is looking over the assembled group. He looks troubled.

"What's wrong? I thought you'd be glad. They're trying to help, just like you wanted."

"I wanted them to help each other out, yeah, but this is different. This is lives on the line, Alodia."

"Don't you trust us to take care of ourselves?"

"Honestly? No. Maybe it's overconfidence, but I wasn't worried about me going alone. But a group this big? Maybe if we had someone with a few more...survival skills to get us through..."

He glances over at Jake, currently locked in a tug-of-war with Murphy over the coffee mug.

"You mean Jake?"

Sean sighs, rubbing a hand over his face. "I can't stand the guy. But he's got more training than the rest of us combined. He won't listen to me...but you've got more of a rapport with him..."

"Say no more. You're right about his training. I'm glad you're thinking of that."

I walk over to Jake. He glances up at my approach, which gives Murphy the chance to wrestle the coffee mug away and scamper off. Jake groans.

"Dammit, you little-" He sighs and smiles up at me. "Howdy, Princess. Lemme guess. You want me to sign up for your little Suicide Squad."

"More or less."

"Does Captain America know you're asking me to crash his party?"

"Actually, he's the one who wanted me to ask you."

"Ha! Right! You're a bad liar, you know that? You could've just said you were gonna miss me."

"Yeah, I could have." I grin, folding my arms. "But I'm a bad liar."

Jake makes a show of clutching his chest and staggering back. "Oh! That hurt! But I guess I walked into that one." He ruffles my hair. "Fine. Why the hell not? As if this place wasn't dangerous enough. Let's go climb an active volcano!"

The sun is climbing in the sky as we hike through the steaming jungle. Sweat makes my body slick, collecting in puddles in the hollows on my skin, under my nose, behind my clavicles, and at my manubrium. It soaks into my clothes, leaving damp spots under my arms and beneath my breasts. It plasters my hair to my face, my shoulders, the back of my neck. As dense as the humidity is, there is no place for it to go. I start to feel like I'm swimming though the jungle, drawing tepid water into my lungs with every breath.

"Whew!" Jake breathes. "Hotter than a Turkish bath out here!"

I grin tiredly. "Hang out at a lot of Turkish baths, Top Gun?"

"Wouldn't you like to know."

"If you're hot, you could always take your shirt off."

"You bring me out here just to ogle me, Princess?"

I can't help asking, "So what if I did?"

He snorts. "I'm not that easy. You gotta wine and dine me first." But he does slip his jacket off and stuff it into his backpack.

"Hey, I can totally do that."

"How's everybody holding up?" Sean asks. "Wanna break for something to eat?"

"Sounds good," I agree. "We've been hiking a couple hours now."

We all take a moment to sit down and have some water. Grace opens up the bag of leftovers that Raj packed us. Suddenly, she shrieks, throwing the bag on the ground.

"What's wrong?"

"Everything's all...moldy!" she cries in disbelief.

"What?!"

We all gather around to have a look. ...Sure enough, inside layers of cellophane, our entire food supply has turned to spotted green, brown, and blue mush. Most of it is leaking, and the heavy, foul odor eminating from the bag is enough to make me gag.

"Aww, gross!" Craig groans.

Murphy sniffs at the bag, and backs away, whining.

"But...we just left!" I protest, as if that will somehow make the food edible again. "The food's not even a day old!"

"It's humid as hell out here, but that just doesn't seem possible!"

Craig moans. "No way I'm making it another eight hours without lunch!"

"I don't think we have a choice," I say sorrowfully. "Maybe we'll find something at the observatory. I don't think we should risk eating any berries or fruits here. This island is too weird."

After a few more minutes of rest and water, we stand up and push on, but there's a palpable shift in the mood. The loss of our food supplies has weakened morale. If we weren't noticably hungry before, the certainty that we won't eat for at least another few hours suddenly has our bodies demanding food. I try to focus on the chorus of birds, mammals, and insects humming in the forest. It kinda reminds me of going to the San Diego Wild Animal Park with Diego and his family one summer when we were eight or nine. We laughed about the fact that Diego was in San Diego, and declared that he was the king of the whole park. At Larikeet Landing, we got cups of nectar, and were immediately swarmed by colorful little birds. It was thrilling until one of them pooed on Diego's jacket. He looked like he was going to cry until I started yelling at the birds for pooing on the king of the park. The birds of course ignored my scolding, and one of them peed on my hand a moment later, which started Diego laughing. By the time his parents took us into the bathrooms to clean off, we were both breathless and clutching our sides.

"Hey, Alodia..." Sean's voice brings me back to the present. "You holding up all right?"

"Hmm? Yeah, I'm fine. I was just reminiscing."

"...Listen...thanks for backing me up and getting this team together. ...But you gotta understand, I wasn't doing this to be the hero. I hope you know that..."

I study him for a moment. Then I nod.

"I know." I'm not sure that I do know, but I think he needs to hear it.

"Good." He looks relieved.

"Besides, you don't need to do anything to be the hero. From what I hear, you already are."

He shrugs. "Newspapers need a narrative. But that's not me."

"So, what's the real reason you wanted to go it alone?"

"It's just how I've always been. My whole life, I've been taught the only person you can really count on is yourself." He sighs. "It's the way I play, too. I have great teammates, but when things go bad, I scramble. I improvise. And when it's just me, that's when I feel most at ease. I don't have to worry about getting anyone else hurt."

"Yeah, that's Sean Gayle for ya," Craig sighs. "Always going it alone. Even to the draft."

"What are you talking about, Craig? You're a top prospect. We're gonna get drafted by the same team and live it up!"

"You almost sound like you believe that."

"Don't you?" I ask.

"Why would he?" Michelle mutters. "Why would he trust anything Sean says? He just ends up leaving everyone behind."

Sean scowls at her. "I hope you're not talking about yourself, Michelle. Because I really don't think you're qualified to talk about _trust_."

Michelle goes quiet, pursing her lips. An awkward silence descends over the group. Even the forest seems to go still for a moment. Zahra finally breaks it.

"That's what you losers get for believing in human beings. Zahra's first rule: Trust nobody. They only end up betraying you."

"I think trust is great," Jake says. "So long as it's other people's. You just gotta be the one doing the betraying."

Sean rolls his eyes. "Real healthy outlook there, Jake."

"Ain't it?"

"That's so sad," Grace sighs. "Being so scared of getting hurt that you never open up to anyone?"

"What are you talking about?" Zahra scoffs. "Raj burped last night and you screamed. You're scared of everything!"

"Of heights and snakes and clowns and crustaceans maybe, but not of being vulnerable with someone. Not that I ever really have...but I want to."

Michelle shakes her head. "Believe me, Grace, you don't want to put your faith in other people."

"I know it's a statistical inevitability that one day I'll get hurt. But I won't let that stop me from searching for love."

I'm not sure what possesses me to make me say it, but I blurt out, "Searching for it with who? Aleister?"

Grace's eyes widen like a deer in headlights. Color rises in her dark cheeks. "What? No, no, I mean—"

Craig laughs. "Look! She's blushing!"

"No!" she protests. "That's just the heat!"

"The heat of your hot, hot love!" Zahra crows.

"Guys!" Sean snaps. "Knock it off, will ya?"

"Sorry, Grace," I say. "I wasn't trying to-"

"It's okay," she says softly, but she moves away from me a bit. The others quiet down, but Craig and Zahra keep snickering to themselves.

We trudge on through the rainforest. Suddenly, Jake stops, rooted to the spot. He raises a fist.

"Uh...what's he doing?" Zahra asks.

"Some kind of protest?" Craig suggests.

"No!" Jake growls lowly. "It's the 'stop moving' signal! Someone's here. Watching us."

My heart drops into my stomach. ...He's right. I know he is. And I can't explain how.

"We need to get down!" I hiss.

"Damn right we do!" Jake says.

"Behind those ferns! Hurry!"

Everyone hesitates, frozen with panic.

"The hell are you waiting for?" Jake growls. "You heard the lady!"

The others find their feet, and we all duck down behind the ferns beside the path.

"Jake," I whisper. "Where is it?"

"There."

I follow his gaze, and I see what he does. A pair of eyes, glowing gold. They blink. My heart hammers painfully against my ribs. And suddenly, it is as if I can see our whole group, cowering behind the ferns, plain as day.

"Jake," I whisper, "it can still see us-"

"No way. It's too-"

"I'm serious. I just know it can see us."

Jake gives me a strange look. I look back as earnestly as I can manage.

"...What is it?" Sean whispers. "Some kind of animal?"

"Maybe it's just curious?" Grace suggests hopefully.

"Yeah, curious what we taste like," Jake mutters. "I'm gonna loop around behind and get the drop on it."

"Not alone, you're not!" I hiss. "I'm coming with you!"

"Suit yourself."

We creep through the jungle, darting from tree to tree. Jake moves with practiced grace, stealthy as a cat.

"You seem like you've done this before."

"You could say that."

"How'd you learn?"

"By watching the people hunting me," he says flatly. His voice is cold and detatched.

"...When were you hunted...?"

"...Back during my service. Everything hit the fan, and suddenly, I was on my own. If you don't learn how the people tracking you are doing it, then it's only a matter of time before they get you."

"...What will you do if we do find this thing?"

"Whatever it takes to protect you. We should stop yacking now."

We're reaching the point where we saw the golden eyes.

"Come on," Jake mutters. "Where the hell are you...?"

I look around. Every shadow seems to conceal a threat. And then that feeling returns. The feeling that I am watching myself. ...I can clearly see my own left side.

"...I...I think it's somewhere to our left..."

"You sure?"

I nod. "I think so..."

Jake lunges left and pulls apart the ferns. A flash of pale blue shoots out of the spot and blurs into the treetops. Jake staggers back.

"What the-" But whatever it is has already vanished. He growls in frustration and shouts at the treetops, "Yeah, you better run!"

"...Jake..."

He turns to me. "You okay, Alodia? Whatever that was, I don't think it wants any part of us."

"But what was it? I don't think I've ever seen any animal move that fast."

Jake kneels down beside the ferns, examining the earth at their stems.

"I'm...not convinced it was an animal." He waves me over. "Come take a look at this."

I come to kneel beside him, and I immediately see what he is looking at. A clear impression in the soft earth.

"...That's...a human footprint!"

"Maybe we're not alone here after all," he murmurs. He stands, offering me a hand up. I accept it, and we walk back together.

The rest of the group is waiting for us. They look at us questioningly. Jake shakes his head.

"Not sure what it was...but it ran off. We're in the clear for now."

We all continue together up the path. It starts to slope uphill, gradually at first, and then more sharply. The sun starts to rapidly disappear. As the sky turns soft and blue, stars begin to peak through the canopy above us. Soft dirt slowly turns to stone under our feet as we break through the trees. Standing on the mountainside, I look up at a beautiful, clear night sky, sprinkled with stars.

"Okay, _how_ is it nighttime?" Michelle asks. "We left at the ass-crack of dawn, and we can't have been gone more than three hours!"

I pull my phone out of my pocket. "...My phone says it's 9PM. But...it shouldn't be later than 9AM."

Jake shakes his head in disbelief. "I am not nearly drunk enough to have lost twelve hours."

"Let's stay focused," Sean says. "The important thing is getting to the Observatory. We call for help, we get rescued, we go home. This has to be the mountain pass. Once we get past this, we should be at the volcano."

Zahra kicks a small rock over the edge of the cliff and watches it drop down into the river churning below. She whistles lowly.

"Hey, Grace. Didn't you say you were scared of heights? Come check this out."

Grace pales slightly. "What? N-n-no way..."

Zahra laughs, spreading her arms and leaning slightly over the edge, letting the wind blow through her hair.

"Come on! Best way to overcome your fears is to face th-"

"Look out!" I suddenly scream. The cry is out of my mouth before I even fully register the massive red claw that has appeared from behind the cliff, sharp pinchers moving towards her head. Zahra whips around and drops down just as the claw snaps shut, nearly decapitating her.

"Holy hell!"

"Wh-what is that?!"

An enormous red shell, at least four feet across, rises over the cliff's edge, carried on spindly armored legs. Several pairs of dead, black eyes drink me in over over a grotesque mouth that gnashes its fangs.

I am standing face to face with a crab. A crab the size of a rhinoceros.

"Th-that is too big!" Michelle shrieks. "I've eaten crab before, and crabs are not that big!"

"Honestly," Craig says, backing away, "right now, I miss the sabertooth!"

The crab's legs click on the stone as it draws closer, snapping its claws.

"Grace, get back!" Sean cries.

But Grace is frozen in terror. The crab raises itself on its narrow legs, arching its claw towards her. Suddenly, it recoils as a rock strikes it in one of its eight eyes. I look over and see Jake picking up another rock. He hurls it, and his aim is true.

"Hey, Seafood Special! There's more where that came from!"

The crab turns on Jake, giving Sean time to grab Grace and pull her out of harm's way. Growling, Murphy pounces forward and unleashes a spray of ice, freezing the crab's claw. But the creature easily shatters the crystal as it opens its claw again. Jake hurls another rock, but the crab holds a pincher in front of its eyes like a shield.

"Aw, crap!" Jake growls. "It's achieved sentience!"

"That's not what that means!" Grace protests.

The crab looms closer. Close enough that I can see myself reflected at least eight times over in its shining black eyes. We huddle together, backing away slowly.

"What the hell do we do?" Michelle whispers.

Sean runs forward, waving his arms to attract the creature's attention.

"Run! Go! I'll lead it away from you!"

"No, dude!" Craig cries. "What are you doing?"

"I'm scrambling!"

"Why do you always have to be the hero, you idiot!" Michelle screams with frustration.

"Because someone has to do something, and I don't have any better ideas!"

"Looks like she does!"

I follow Zahra's gaze and see a shadow pass over the moon. Then suddenly, Estela is there, wielding a spear made with a knife tied to a pole. With a fierce battle cry, she leaps over a ridge, and drives the spear into the base of one the crab's legs. She twists the spearhead and snaps the leg from the carapace. The crab staggers back in pain.

"Estela!" I cry.

"Get out of there!" Grace shouts.

Estela ignores us both, squaring off against the creature. She twirls the spear in her hands. The shaft blurs with the speed of her movements. The crab limps towards her, claws raised. Her eyes narrow.

"Let's dance."


	9. Into the Fire

A massive claw snaps towards Estela. She dives, rolling around its side. She pushes her spear forward, but the crab swings its claw towards her and knocks the spear aside, out of her grip. Now Estela is teetering on the edge of the cliff, barely keeping her balance. The crab limps towards her again, shockingly fast, even with its injury.

"The hell are you doing, Katniss?!" Jake screams. "Move your ass!"

At the last possible moment, Estela launches herself into the air, vaulting over the crab's shell and narrowly threading through the slicing pinchers. It's a move that would have made my gymnastics coaches see visions of gold medals.

Estela retrieves her spear and thrusts it at the crab, but the creature has already turned around. It catches the spear. Estela growls through gritted teeth and pushes forward, trying to shove the creature off the edge, but its sharp claws dig into the stone. An idea hits me like lightning.

"Murphy! Aim for the ground!"

Murphy yips his assent, and blows a blast of ice crystals at the ground under the crab's feet. A slippery sheet of ice coats the stone.

"Now, Estela!"

Estela plants her feet and pushes. The crab slides back on the ice. My heart pounds in my throat as it tips over the edge of the cliff and plummets out of sight. Estela looks back at us, her chest heaving, wiping at the sweat that drips from her brow.

"Quick thinking," she says. "Now, does one of you wanna tell me what the hell you're doing off the resort grounds?"

"We're calling for help," I reply. I briefly explain the situation. She shakes her head.

"You shouldn't have left. I told you to stay put."

"It was worth the risk," I snap.

"Was it? If not for me, you'd be dead right now."

"But we're not, are we."

Estela sizes me up. "No," she concedes. "Not yet."

"How did you find us?" Grace asks.

"I just went towards the sound of you all screaming bloody murder," Estela answers flatly.

"Fair enough."

"So, Sarah Connor," Jake chimes in, "you gonna tell us where you've been the last two days?"

"No."

"...Cool, good talk."

Estela turns away, and starts walking towards the rainforest.

"Wait! Where are you going!"

"The crab survived. It will be coming for you. I'm going to hunt it down and finish it off. You're welcome."

The darkness beneath the jungle canopy is poised to consume her. Just short of its gaping black maw, she pauses, looking over her shoulder to meet my eyes. ...And then just like that, she is gone. Swallowed by the jungle.

"...I hope she can manage on her own," Grace says softly.

The memory of the dream that woke me this morning comes to me like an echo. _Come find me, Alodia...come find me..._

I swallow, stepping forward. "You guys keep going. I'm going after her. I'm going to help her fight that crab."

"Dude, seriously?" Craig exclaims. "You're gonna go looking for that thing?"

"She saved us once. I won't let her do it again without help." Murphy whines, trotting towards me. I kneel down to scratch his ears. "You stay here, fella. Look after the others. I'll be back."

"Rrfm!" He puts his front paws on my chest and licks my chin once before trotting back towards the others.

As I stand, Sean's eyes lock with mine. I can feel him searching me, trying to read me. Finally, he nods.

"Good luck, Alodia. Catch up with us if you can."

"Will do." I turn towards the jungle, but Jake catches my arm. I look back at him.

"I'm going with you," he says, locking eyes with me.

I hold his gaze for a moment before shaking my head. "No. Estela's going to be mad enough one person came after her. If we both go, she'll send us packing."

Jake's grip on my arm tightens slightly. For a moment, I think he's going to argue. Then he sighs.

"Fine. Just...be careful, okay?"

I smile, trying to make it easy and light. "You know me. I've got this." He nods, his hand lingering on my arm a moment longer before he finally lets me go.

"Hey, Alodia?" Craig pipes up. "Ask her if she can get us some food, would ya? My stomach is growling so loud right now."

"At least it's probably scaring off other predators," Michelle mutters.

"I'll see what I can do," I promise, and turn to head down the path.

I have to hurry to catch up with her. It's darker under the canopy of trees than on the mountainside with the moon and stars unobscured. I struggle to keep my footing over underbrush and gnarled roots. My footsteps are heavy, and twigs snap beneath my sneakers.

A shadowy figure leaps out from behind a tree, onto the path in front of me, growling. I freeze. ...It's a human voice. A human shape, lunging at me, and then stopping short, stumbling back.

"...Alodia?!"

Estela slowly takes shape from the semi-darkness in front of me. I look down and see the point of her spear bare milimeters from my belly. She quickly turns the point away from me.

"Dammit, I could've killed you! Why did you follow me?!"

I could tell her I want to help. I could tell her that I want to get to know her. But instead, I answer, "Because I dreamt that you told me to."

She stops. "You...dreamt about me...?"

"Yeah. ...I know, it's weird..." But in the semi-darkness, I can just make out her expression. She looks thoughtful. "Or...maybe you know what I mean. ...Estela...have you been having weird dreams, too? Ones that feel like-"

"...Memories?" She pauses. "...Yeah. One about you, actually..."

"You dreamt about me, too? What happened in it?"

"We were...adrift in this underground lake. I remember blue algae glowing on the water and reflecting on the walls of the cavern. Then you took my hand..." She trails off. "...And then I woke up."

I am quiet for a long moment. So is she.

"Estela...I'm not going anywhere. I'm not letting you face that thing alone."

She sighs. "You're stubborn, aren't you."

"I could say the same thing about you."

"Well, if you're just gonna stand there until you turn into a tree, then I guess you might as well come with me. But stay close." She bends down beside a tree and picks up something from behind it. As she swings it over her shoulders, I realize she has a backpack. ...And something else.

"A flashlight! You're a regular Girl Scout, aren't you?"

"Hardly." After a moment, she holds out a hand to me. "...It will be easier to keep track of each other if we link up."

"...Fair enough." I accept her hand.

A small beam of light keeps the path ahead of her softly illuminated. Her footsteps are light as a cat's paws. I keep my eyes open for any sign of the crab.

There is a sudden pain just above my collarbone, a powerful sting like the prick of a needle that's been held to a flame. I gasp sharply, staggering, my hand flying to the spot.

"Alodia? What's wrong?"

"Nothing...I...think an insect stung me...or..."

I blink, feeling the jungle floor start to roll under my feet. The blood rushes out of my head, replaced by something ice-cold. My knees turn to water.

"Alodia!"

There's something solid holding me upright. ...Estela...she lowers me gently to the ground. I can't see her...I can't see anything except a blur of strangely-colored lights. I hear myself moan. I feel hands on my shoulder...hands stroking my face and hair...

"Alodia, listen to me." Estela's voice seems very far away. "You were bitten by a snake. They hang down from the trees sometimes. But you're going to be all right. I promise. I just need you to take deep breaths. Keep taking deep breaths."

I feel pressure on my upper arm. Everything feels cold, except for a searing, burning pain radiating from the spot on my shoulder. I try to find Estela's face in the pulsing, whirling blur of light above me, but I can't see her.

"You're going to feel a small sting," I hear her say. And then it comes...somewhere on my arm. The pressure releases. When I hear her speak again, she sounds closer. "Come on, Alodia. Stay with me. Focus on my voice."

I hear myself whimpering. The sound of my own fear and pain and the rushing of my blood in my ears drowns out her voice. I feel myself sinking. Her voice breaks through the haze again.

"Nononono, don't you dare quit on me..." There is an urgency in her voice now that seems to catch my attention. "Alodia, stay with me! Come on!"

I feel her hand on my face, stroking it gently. I lean into the warmth of her palm as if it is my anchor to the world, to life. For all I can tell, it is. Her face starts to take shape out of the darkness. My eyes find hers, and I see her smile.

"That's it. There you are. Stay with me. You're coming back."

"...Y-you're...blurry..."

"That should pass. Breathe slow and deep as you can."

After a long moment, she starts to come into focus. The pain in my shoulder dulls, and warm feeling starts to flood back into my limbs.

"I...I think I'm okay."

She smiles at me. "You're tougher than you look. Lie still for a moment, though. I got the antivenom into you pretty quickly, so there shouldn't be lasting damage from the venom itself. But you'll need to be carefully watched for a possible reaction to the medicine."

"Wait...antivenom? Where did you get that?"

She holds up an empty syringe with a spot of bright red blood on the tip of its needle. "I had a few doses in a cooler in my bag."

"...You normally keep antivenom on hand?"

She looks away, breaking off the needle and slipping it into a plastic cylinder. "...I knew where I was headed."

I don't press her further. After a few minutes, she stands and offers me a hand. I sit up slowly and accept it. With impressive strength, she pulls me to my feet. For a moment, I cling to her as the blood rushes away from my head again.

"I've got you," she says gently. "Just breathe."

Presently, the earth settles under my feet, and the jungle stops tipping before my eyes. I release her.

"I'm good now."

"Let's get you out of here. Lean on me. You'll probably be feeling woozy a bit longer."

With Estela bracing me, we trudge on through the forest, which is starting to turn lighter. We emerge at the edge of the mountain ridge. In front of us, the island slopes hundreds of feet downward towards the Caribbean.

"...The sun is rising already," Estela murmurs. "We can take a moment to rest here, if you need to."

I nod. Between the ordeal with the snake, and hunger, and the claw wounds still fresh on my torso, I'm almost regretting my decision to follow Estela—or to join in the expedition to the observatory in the first place. Almost regretting, but not quite.

We sit down by the cliff's edge, passing a canteen of water between us as the sun begins to set the horizon alight.

"Man...I'm gonna miss this," Estela murmurs.

"The sunrise? There's always another."

"...Not for all of us." She sighs. "Let's just say that when I came to La Huerta, I didn't expect to leave a free woman."

I gaze at her for a long moment, studying the scar over her eye. I glance down at her hand, resting on the stone beside her thigh. Finally, I cover it with mine. She meets my gaze.

"...I don't get you. You don't look scared of me."

I shrug. "...Maybe I am. You're clearly dangerous."

"...Yeah...maybe I'm scared of you, too. If anyone's dangerous, it's you."

"Why me?"

"...I didn't count on you. That's all."

I don't answer that. The edge of the sky lights up like a wildfire, and the sun crests over the ocean, rising more quickly than seems possible. In the space of less than a minute, there is full daylight.

"...Did we just see what I think we just saw?"

"It's this island," Estela answers grimly. "There's something about— _MOVE!_ "

Estela pulls me sharply out of the way, just as a titan crab claw slams down from above onto the very spot where I was just sitting. The crab scurries down the sheer cliff wall where we were sitting and lands in front of us, snapping its claws. We scramble to our feet.

"I guess _it_ was hunting _us_!"

Estela takes up a fighting stance, spear in hand. "Get behind me!" she growls.

I shrink behind her as the crab lashes out with its claws. Estela expertly parries each strike, moving in an elegant, deadly dance at the edge of the cliff. But the crab is pushing us back, cornering us against a sheer drop. Estela lunges, striking at the crab's carapace, but the hard shell deflects the blow.

"I can't get a scratch on it!" she snarls in frustration. "Its armor is too strong!"

I cast my eyes frantically around, searching for something, anything that could shift things in our favor. Then I see it.

"Estela, look! On the next ledge up! A boulder! We could drop it on the crab!"

"Hold on! Stay put and do exactly what I say!" She pushes forward with a flurry of aggressive strikes, putting the crab on the defensive and gaining some ground against it. "Alodia! Run at me now, fast as you can!"

Without stopping to think, I run at Estela's back, putting all my strength into the sprint. At the last second, she drops her spear and turns, cupping her hands.

"Jump!" she orders. I plant one foot in her grip, and she launches me towards the target. The crab reaches for me as I fly overhead, but my gymnastics training takes over. I tuck into a flip and stretch out in time to land upright beside the boulder. I don't stick the landing. My body is weakened, having been pushed to its limits, and my legs give out. But I gather the strength to struggle upright.

"Hurry!" Estela screams.

I push against the boulder, throwing the whole of my one-hundred twenty-five pounds behind the effort. But it's not enough. It's too heavy without leverage.

"Estela! Throw me your spear!"

"Are you completely insane?!"

"Trust me! Please!"

Estela leaps back from a strike and spins her spear in her hand. She hurls it towards me, blunt end first. I reach up and snatch it from the air. I plant one end under the boulder, and throw my weight down on the other.

The boulder pops free and tumbles over the ridge. I hear a sickening crack, followed by a splat. Daring to peek over the ridge, I see that the boulder has hit its target. The claws snap one more time, and then go still. Trembling, I climb down the ridge towards Estela. She holds her arms out to me, helping me the final few feet down.

"Quick thinking. I'm impressed."

I smile weakly, trying to control the violent tremors rippling through my body.

"I c-can't believe that worked..."

"Yeah?" Estela says, smiling wryly. "I think human history would argue that smashing things with rocks has pretty much always worked."

I giggle. "Okay, fair."

Her smile fades. "But we were almost killed, Alodia. We almost got killed because I was thinking about you instead of watching my surroundings."

Her words hit me like a slap, and I feel my temper flare. "How is that my fault?" I snap, glaring at her.

She meets my angry gaze steadily. "That's just it, Alodia. It's not. It's my fault." She shakes her head. "You're a distraction, plain and simple. And I can't have distractions right now. I don't have the time or the margin of error to..."

"...To what?"

"To care about you, okay?!"

An awkward silence descends. I can't meet her eyes, and I think she feels the same. We both look at the crab, crushed under the boulder. Suddenly, Estela's brow furrows.

"...Hey...what's this?" She reaches for the crab's shell, and wrenches something out. She holds it out to me.

"Is that...an arrowhead?" I take it carefully from her hand. "I can't tell how old it is. It looks like it's made out of some kind of amber."

"It looks like amber, but it can't be. The shell was hard enough to block my spear. Whatever this is made of must be way stronger than amber. ...I've never seen anything like it." She takes it back and slips it into the pocket of her jeans. "We should get you back to the others. This thing won't be causing you guys any more problems."

A fierce pain in my belly reminds me of something. "Before we go...do you happen to know where we might find some food? We lost our supply on the way."

"Hmmm...you know...I think I might have an idea."

We head back toward the mountain pass where we left the rest of the group, only to encounter them in the rainforest. The sky is rapidly going dark again.

"Alodia!" Sean calls out to me. "Hey, guys! Alodia's back!"

"You're okay!" Grace cries happily. The group surrounds me, grinning and patting me on the back. Murphy bounces around my feet, yipping.

"You still in one piece, Princess? Haven't lost any fingers or toes?"

"All here," I assure them.

"I totally would've bet you were dead," Craig says. "Mad respect."

"What are you guys doing here?"

"Coming after you," Jake says. "You didn't really think we were just gonna sit back and let you bail us out, did ya? You'd never let us hear the end of it."

"Did you kick some crusty crustacean ass or what?" Zahra asks.

"I don't suppose you found any food?" Michelle asks.

"As a matter of fact..." I look back over my shoulder, where Estela is dragging several huge crab legs wrapped in leaves.

She smiles. "Anyone want to help me build the campfire?"

We move out of the rainforest, back to the mountain pass. The sky is once again black and star-filled.

"...Weird. It's nighttime again already?"

Sean looks strangely at me. "What do you mean 'again'? The sun hasn't come up yet."

I share a glance with Estela. But we don't comment as we start building a fire. Within an hour, we're all sitting around a roaring fire, stuffing ourselves with flame-cooked crab meat. At first, we barely wait for it to cool before shoving it in. But as our hunger pangs ease, we slow down. When we're all stuffed to the gills, there is still meat left over.

Craig leans back, belching loudly. "Best crab I've had in my life, dude."

"Seriously, Estela, you're the best," Michelle says with a satisfied sigh.

"I can't believe you managed to beat that thing!" Grace says.

"Actually, it was mostly Alodia. I just helped a little."

"No way!" Zahra looks at me. "For real?"

I smile a little and shrug, licking my fingers. Jake pats my back.

"Well, well, well...not too shabby, Princess."

"And you keep saying that _I_ need to be the hero," Sean teases me, grinning.

My smile widens, even as I feel myself blushing. "I didn't know I had it in me."

"I did," he says.

One by one, we all start to feel the effects of our second feast in as many days. Around me, my friends start to yawn. Murphy, his own tiny belly heavy with crab meat, dozes at my feet.

"Well...it's dark out, and the rest of the climb looks dangerous," Sean remarks. "Why don't we get a little sleep before we move forward?"

"You don't have to tell me twice," Craig says dreamily.

"I don't think anyone is going to fight you on that, Sean," I add around a wide yawn.

We all curl up, searching for the most comfortable stretches of stone to rest on.

"I'm gonna need about ten feet of personal space from you, Craig," I hear Zahra say.

"Um...my B."

I curl up on my side, a little ways from the fire, which is starting to burn down. Feeling me move, Murphy wakes up just enough to sleepily crawl over to me and curl up in the crook of my legs. It's comfortable enough at first, but as I start to drift off, chill creeps over me. Soft and sweet as he is, the coolness eminating from Murphy doesn't help. Nor does the cool breeze rising off the ocean. I shiver.

"...You cold, Princess?"

I look over at Jake. He's lying just about a foot away, using his green bomber jacket as a blanket.

"...A little..."

"Not surprised, in that get up." He lifts the end of his jacket closest to me and pats the ground beside him. Seeing my hesitation, he smiles. "Come on. I don't bite."

"You sure about that?"

"Guess it depends on what you're into. But that's not what my aim is here. Just trying to keep you from freezing."

I relent, scooting over and nestling under his jacket, with his arm for a pillow. Murphy makes a noise that sounds indignant and pads over. He climbs on top of us and plops down, snorting. Protected by Jake's jacket, the chill of his fur doesn't bother me so much. I scratch his head. "No more moving, boy. I promise."

For awhile, Jake and I lie side by side in silence, staring up at the sky.

"...Amazing," I murmur. "There's nowhere in Riverside or Hartfeld where you can see so many stars..."

"In the city, it's easy to forget the stars are even there. It's a big sky, but we just black it out. Make our own lights."

"Kind of a perfect metaphor for our situation."

"You think so?"

"...I've been thinking that the world has gone crazy. ...But maybe it's always been crazy, and it's only now that the mask has come off. It's stunning how fast everything can change. But maybe it's just my perception that's changed."

He curls his arm to give my shoulder a squeeze. I nestle a little closer to him, letting my head rest on his shoulder.

"...You haven't had an easy time of it here so far," he murmurs.

"Neither have you. ...I never got to say it at the time, but...I'm sorry about your plane."

"...Delilah."

"What?"

"That was her name. Delilah. ...Don't make fun, Princess, I'm still in mourning."

"I wasn't going to."

"...I know she wasn't much, but she was one of the few things in the world that was still mine. It's especially hard being surrounded by strangers."

"...Am I still a stranger? Even after you cleaned the bloody claw marks on my ribs?"

"I guess not. But to be honest, it's been a long time since I've been surrounded by anyone but strangers."

"Jake...why did you run off to Costa Rica?"

He is quiet long enough that I think he is not going to answer me. Then he speaks.

"Ever had a secret, one you couldn't tell anyone...and it made you feel like you were drowning?"

"...Whatever it is, it won't make me think less of you."

"It should." He sighs. "The thing is...sometimes in the military, you see things you wish you could forget. And other times, you see things you were supposed to forget..."

"...What is it that you want to tell me?"

"...Everything, Alodia," he says softly. "I want to tell you everything. But I can't. I did that once already. And that person isn't around to talk to anymore. ...Telling you feels like tempting fate."

I go quiet. My head on his chest rises and falls with his breath. Finally, I give him a quick squeeze.

"...Good night, Jake."

"...Sweet dreams, kid. Don't drool on my shoulder."

"I'll try."

He chuckles. And that's the last sound I hear before I finally drift off to sleep, feeling warm, full, and secure in his arms.

... _Bright sunlight wakes me. I open my eyes in the lobby of The Celestial, and roll out of the massage chair, which is still vibrating. I stretch, cracking my back, and wander over to the mirror. I feel myself smile. A face in the mirror smiles back at me. A round, dark face surrounded by black curls._

 _"Lookin' good, Raj!" The face in the mirror speaks, but the voice comes from my throat, deep and masculine. "Hey, you too, Raj!"_

 _Out of a dark void somewhere, my own mental voice floats to the top of my brain._

I'm...Raj?

 _I am inside his body, thinking his thoughts. Somewhere in the back of his brain is me. The essence of me. But I'm just a thought. A presence. I am not in control of his body. Raj is in control. Carrying me along like a passenger. I'm not even sure he knows I'm here._

 _He wanders outside the hotel, to the pool area, where he finds Quinn, Diego, and Aleister._

 _"Hey! What up, party people?"Nobody looks up. "...Hey...why's it so quiet out here?"_

 _Diego reclines on a floating pool chair, a bloody mary nearly empty in his hand. From the empty glasses beside the pool, it seems he's already had a few. For all his easy posture, I can tell he's feeling desperately anxious._

 _"I'm just...worried about Allie and the others," he mumbles._

 _"Me too," Quinn agrees. "I can't stop wondering if they're okay."_

 _"They're almost certainly dead," Aleister mutters. "The fools..."_

 _Raj frowns as he takes in the three worried faces in front of him. He can't bear to see them looking so grim. He wants to do something to cheer them up._

This is crazy! _My mental voice protests._ It has to be some sort of dream!

 _But I don't try to wake myself up._

 _"Trust me, guys. They're all okay. I guarantee it."_

 _"How do you know?" Quinn asks._

 _He hesitates, wondering how he does know. He searches his brain, and he seems to zero in on my presence._

 _"Because I can feel Alodia in my head right now," he declares._

 _The others stare blankly at him. Aleister is the first to break the silence._

 _"...What?"_

 _"I'm super serious!"_

 _"Dude, how high are you right now?" Diego asks. "Are you_ Harold and Kumar _high, or like,_ Trainspotting _high?"_

 _Lila wanders into the pool area, catching Raj's attention._

 _"Hey, Lila, how are you holding up?" She doesn't answer immediately. She paces back and forth, muttering to herself. "Uh...Lila? Where've you been, yo?"_

 _"Huh? Sorry, I'm just...trying to figure out this gosh-darn password."_

 _"Any luck?"_

 _"Not so far. I thought I knew Mr. Rourke well enough to guess it, but I was wrong."_

 _"Don't worry, Lila," Quinn says. "I'm sure we'll find the answers eventually."_

 _Raj looks around at the crestfallen faces. The need to cheer them is growing, making him feel desperate. He looks around, noting the diving board, and a small pile of inflatable beach balls at the bottom of it. On impulse, he grabs one of the balls._

 _"Surprise dodgeball!" he yells. "Think fast, Al!"_

 _He chucks the ball at Aleister. Aleister turns and tries unsuccessfully to dodge, throwing himself off balance. He tips over like a felled tree and lands in the pool with a huge splash._

 _"Oops! Sorry!" Raj calls._

 _Everyone around the pool bursts out laughing as Aleister pulls himself out of the pool, spitting water. His wet clothes cling tightly to his body, revealing a lean, muscular frame. Diego whistles._

 _"Whaddya know? Aleister has abs!"_

 _"Are you mocking me?"_

 _"Not at all! You look good! Quinn, back me up here!"_

 _"You do, Aleister," Quinn confirms._

 _Aleister looks in the mirror behind the bar, and a small smile forms on his face. For the moment, it seems Raj's idea has worked. There is a release in the tension that had gripped the group, and everyone breathes a little easier. Satisfied, Raj wanders over to where Aleister is studying himself in the mirror, smoothing his pale hair._

 _"Hey, Al-"_

 _Aleister jumps, his hands flying to his sides. "Hrm? I wasn't doing anything! Simply...tidying up in case the others return."_

 _"And by others you mean..." Raj trails off with a knowing grin, waiting for Aleister to finish his sentence. But after a long silence, Raj sighs. "Grace, dude. By others you mean Grace. You were supposed to finish my line."_

 _"What in the heavens has gotten into your smoke-suffocated brain? This has absolutely nothing to do with the fact that Grace could return at any moment and catch me looking...silly..."_

 _He glances back at the mirror, and a hand drifts back up to his hair. Raj throws an arm over his skinny shoulders._

 _"If I may be so bold as to impart a little Raj wisdom, you have to tell her how you feel."_

 _"How am I supposed to do that, when I don't even know how I feel?"_

 _"Well, that's your first problem. Can't put her on the spot unless you know what it is you want. Think about this, though. One day, I was really, really high and I wanted Cheetos. But my couch was so comfy and I didn't want to get up. I wanted the Cheetos to come to me. I dreamed of them showing up at my door and telling me they wanted me too. And you know what happened? I never got those Cheetos. I spent my whole day wishing instead of making my wishes come true."_

 _"Oh, lord in heaven," Aleister groans. "I think something's wrong with me, because that actually made sense."_

 _"You're welcome, buddy! That's only the first step! Here, I'll write out my ten-step plan to romantic bliss."_

 _He tears a photo of a pristine marina off the wall behind the bar and flips it over, about to write on the back, when he suddenly freezes. Something in the photo had slipped into his mind just under the threshold of perception, but now it has reached his consicousness. He turns the photo over again._

 _"Woah. Dude. Look. Boats!"_

 _"Yes," Aleister says impatiently. "It's a picture of boats. Now tell me Step Two."_

 _But Raj isn't thinking about playing Aleister's wingman anymore._

 _"Everybody get over here!" Quinn, Diego, and Lila join them at the bar, and Raj shows them the picture. "Look at this picture!"_

 _"...A...stock photo of a marina?" Diego guesses, looking skeptical._

 _"Not just any marina! Look in the background!" He points, and suddenly everyone can see what he's so excited about. Nearly hidden by the palm trees is the outline of a steaming volcano._

 _"That picture was taken here!" Quinn gasps._

 _"You're right! Look, the peak is the same shape as Mount Atropo!"_

 _Aleister takes the photo, studying it carefully. "Based on the angle of the photo, compared to the volcano, I suspect this was taken only a couple miles south-by-southeast of The Celestial."_

 _"It must be Mr. Rourke's private marina!" Lila exclaims. "Only the wealthiest V.I.P.s kept their catamarans and yachts there."_

 _"And if there are still boats left at the marina..." Raj says thoughtfully._

 _"Then we might have just found our ticket off the island!" Quinn finishes._

Suddenly, I am cast out of Raj's mind. I feel myself free falling, plummenting like a stone. I land hard in my own body, still on the mountain. I bolt upright, my heart pounding against my ribcage. Jake, who has wrapped around me as we slept, is jolted awake as I unwittingly toss him aside. He sits up sharply, gasping. As he remembers where he is, he exhales, running a hand through his tousled hair.

"Holy hell, Princess, you nearly gave me a heart attack." He seems to notice my anxiety and frowns, putting a hand on my shoulder. "Hey...what's wrong?"

"I'm...not sure. Weird dream, I guess. Sorry about that."

He grins. "Don't worry about it. Still think it was worth it."

I look around. The sun is shining brightly overhead now. Just ahead of me, Sean is poking the remains of last night's campfire. He glances up at me and meets my eyes. For a moment, he holds my gaze, then lets it slide slightly over the Jake, who is dribbling water from his canteen onto his hand and rubbing it over his face. ...For some reason, I feel myself blushing, as if I am nine years old and Diego's mom has just caught us watching TV after school when we were supposed to be doing our homework.

Sean looks away. "Okay, everybody. We should push forward while we've still got daylight. The last stretch looks the most dangerous, so stay close."

"You coming with us, Katniss?" Jake asks Estela as we pack up the campsite. She seems to consider the question for a moment. To my surprise, she nods.

"I suppose I can't leave you all to get killed."

I move over the Sean, pulling a bag over his shoulder. "...Hey...Sean?"

"Yeah?"

"...Um...about...this morning...what you saw..."

He shakes his head. "If you're thinking of apologizing, don't. You haven't done anything wrong."

"I know that." After a pause, I say, "But I had a bad feeling that you thought otherwise."

He chuckles and smiles at me. It looks forced, but not insincere.

"Alodia, I've asked you on one date that you haven't even officially agreed to yet. I don't have any right to judge you for spooning with someone else. Of course I wish it had been me, but I'll just have to offer more quickly next opportunity I get."

I smile, feeling relief flood through me. "Yeah. Guess so."

We continue along the path in silence, until it narrows to less than a foot wide. The wind whistles as it races across the jagged cliff face, strong enough that it feels like it could push me right off the edge. I look at the stretch of mountain path before me, swallowing hard.

"...Yeeeeeeeah..." Zahra says. "This is gonna be one gigantic nope for me."

"Do we really have to go this way?" Grace whimpers.

"It looks pretty risky, but this is the very end of the pass." Sean shakes his head as Murphy scampers ahead, easily navigating the narrow pass. "We get around this, we're at the volcano. We'll take it slow and safe. We're not small and nimble like Murphy."

Ahead of us, Murphy yips impatiently. Sean digs into his bag and pulls out a long coil of rope.

"Where'd you get that?"

"The resort. We'll tie ourselves together for safety."

"I'll take care of the knots," Jake volunteers. "Had to learn knotwork in training."

He winds the rope around us one by one. Ten minutes later, we're all tied together in a line. Sean is in front, with me directly behind, followed by Jake. Craig brings up the rear. Taking a deep breath, Sean takes a tentative step forward. The path holds.

"All right. Let's do this. Don't look down."

Together we inch single-file along the precarious, craggy path. Every few seconds, we're battered by another ferocious gust of wind. I cling to the rock face with my fingertips, trying not to look down. I put one foot carefully in front of the other.

"You got this, Alodia," Sean says.

"J-just like a balance beam," I reply with a weak smile.

"Spend much time on a balance beam, Princess?"

"I'd guess she has from what I know," Sean says. "I've seen her doing all these crazy handstands and walkovers on the bleachers at Hartfeld sometimes."

"Just don't try any of that stuff while we're all tied together, Princess."

"Hang on, everyone!" Sean calls back. "We're almost there!"

"Grace?" I hear Estela ask. "Are you holding up?"

I can hear Grace's shallow, labored breathing further down the line.

"I think we're about to lose the nerd, guys!" Zahra calls.

"Chill out, Grace," Craig says. "Do what I do. Think about something awesome instead. Like...muscle cars."

Grace sniffles. "I...I do like muscle cars..."

"Aren't they badass? I've got a Charger myself. When you put the pedal down, that beast just growls. Makes a sound like—"

There's a sudden tremor as the path splinters beneath Craig's feet. He cries out as he feels the ground drop from beneath him.

"Craig!" Sean cries.

Reflexively, we all pull back on the tether, but Craig's weight and momentum are too much. Everything seems to slow down as I watch him topple over the edge. Estela and Grace go with him. Then Zahra, Michelle, and Jake. Finally, the rope snaps taut around my waist and pulls me into the empty air. I hear myself scream as the rope slackens. Then, suddenly, it pulls taut again. I stop falling abruptly, my body flopping like a rag doll with the force of it. I look up.

Sean has caught the edge of the cliff. He has the full weight of our group hanging off him. We're all dangling beneath him against the cliff face, swaying in the breeze.

"Ohhhh, that's a really, _really_ long way down!" Craig says.

"Calm down," Estela growls. "It's such a high drop, you won't even feel it when you die."

"Not helping! So not helping!"

In the distance, I can see the sun dropping rapidly towards the horizon. Within a minute, night has engulfed us again.

"Oh, God, not again," I whimper.

"I can't see a damn thing!" Zahra cries.

"Sean, pull us up!" Michelle screams. "What are you waiting for?!"

"I'm...trying...!" His voice is strained with effort. I see his muscles flexing, the veins bulging in his biceps as he struggles to haul himself back onto the ledge. Sweat pours down his dark face, glistening in the moonlight.

"Respect for the gains, Cap," Jake yells, "but I don't think that's gonna work!"

"It...has to work!" Sean snarls back.

Below me, I hear Grace weeping with terror. I turn my gaze towards her, swallowing the bile that rises in my throat when I take in the emptiness beneath me. Emptiness that ends thousands of feet below...

"Grace!" I call out. "I need you to focus! None of us can do this without you, understand? Are you with us, Grace?"

She gulps, whimpering, but I see her nod.

"Y-y-yes! I'm with you, Alodia!"

But above us, the rope is starting to fray, and the wind buffets us mercilessly. Sean can't hold us all up forever. I can already tell he's tiring. I cast my eyes desperately through the darkness, searching for some way out. I see a tree root sticking out of the cliff face, and another ledge, far to the side, down by Craig. It's wide, and long enough for all of us to fit on it, even if we land clumsily.

"Craig! Do you see that other ledge?!"

"I see it!" Craig calls back. "But it's way off to the side!"

"Run along the cliff face! Try to swing there!"

I grip the rope, and screw my eyes shut, feeling the momentum as he makes the attempt.

"I can't get that far!"

"Everybody help him!" I scream into the wind. "We have to swing ourselves!"

Below me, the others push their legs against the cliffside, swinging like a pendulum in bigger and bigger arcs. I choke on rising bile, gulping it down again and again.

"Almost...there..." Zahra growls.

"I can get us there if I can just...reach..."

"Come on, baby!" Jake mutters. "Come on!"

"The rope's not long enough!" Estela cries.

I make myself look up. Sean is still trying to pull himself up. He's managed to get his elbows over the edge, but the weight of the whole group is too much.

"Sean!" Craig screams. "I can get us to the other ledge, but the tether ain't long enough! You gotta let go, man!"

"Are you nuts?!" Michelle screams. "If Sean lets go, we all die!"

"I can swing us to the lower ledge! We can make it!"

"No..." Sean growls through gritted teeth. "I can...get us...back up..."

"Sean! You gotta trust me! You gotta trust all of us!"

"Sean!" I scream. "Craig can do this! Please!"

Sean looks down at me. In the moonlight, sweat glistens on his face. He barely manages to nod.

"Okay, Craig! On your hard count! You're the Q.B. Now!"

"Everyone! We need one more big swing!"

Beneath Sean, the rest of us run back along the cliff face, away from the lower ledge, storing up energy.

"Oh, god, oh, god..." I hear Michelle whimper.

"Forward!" Craig screams. I shut my eyes as we run forward. When our momentum can take us no further, I hear Craig's voice again. "Hut-hut...HUT!"

"Please..." I hear myself whisper.

The tether goes slack. I'm free-falling. I can't hear anything but the rushing air, and the sound of my blood singing against my eardrums. Then...

"Boo-yah, mother-!" Craig's triumphant cry breaks through the roar. I open my eyes just in time to see Estela land on top of him. Followed quickly by the rest of us. Together, we all collapse in a tangled heap. I groan. I'm the meat of a squirming sandwich, squished between Jake and Sean.

"Thanks for breaking our fall, Craig," I quip, my voice strained.

Craig only groans in reply.

"Uh...whose hand is in my pants right now?" I hear Jake ask.

"That'd be me," Sean says sheepishly. "Sorry about that..."

Slowly, we pick ourselves off each other, untangling from the tether and dusting ourselves off. Remarkably, we all seem to be intact. We're all bruised and aching, but the worst injury seems to be a mild sprain on Craig's left wrist. Sean helps his friend to his feet.

"Not bad, bulldozer."

Craig grins weakly. "Not sure I'd put that one on my highlight reel, but..."

"Hey, it's about time I let someone else carry the weight." Sean grins, waggling his eyebrows. I can't help miming a rimshot. Craig rolls his eyes.

"Hilarious. You and your damn puns." He runs a hand through his hair and smiles almost shyly. "But to get a little sappy here, dude...thanks...for trusting me."

Sean smiles and nods at me. "Thank Alodia. She made me realize that I couldn't do it all on my own, even if I want to protect others. ...It's not just about showing up. It's about trusting each other with the hard parts."

I smile weakly back at him, but I can't bring myself to meet his gaze. After a moment, I have to look away. There is an image in my mind that I cannot shake. An image of what might have happened if Sean had refused to let go...if he had hung on until exhaustion claimed him...hung on until he simply could not any longer...

"Hey, Princess. You okay?"

I force myself to smile at Jake and nod. "Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine."

He frowns a little. "You'd say if you were feeling the strain, right? You've taken more of a beating than most of us in the last couple days."

"I promise it's not that. And anyway, we're almost at the Observatory. I'll be able to rest a little once we get there." I stretch, wincing a little. "I have to admit, this whole vacation is starting to remind me of a game of _Oregon Trail._ I keep expecting a text box to pop up in front of me saying, 'Alodia has typhoid!'"

I grin, but Jake doesn't smile back.

"I'd say we're pretty well past the game part," he says grimly. "We're into the real thing now. Let's just hope this hike is worth it, because I'd like to avoid the part where folks start dyin'."

"...Yeah...so would I."

The sun has come back up by the time we make it past the ridge to the smooth slope of Mount Atropo. Murphy is already waiting for us, thumping his tail impatiently as if to ask what took us so long. As we reach the brow of the hill, a domed building with a massive telescope protruding like a proboscis takes shape against the sky, glittering in the sunlight.

"There it is," Sean says, sounding immeasurably relieved. "The La Huerta Observatory."

"This satellite uplink had better work," Zahra mutters.

"I've got a good feeling it will," Grace declares.

As we climb the path towards the massive structure, something stops me. A soft hissing sound is coming from the ground nearby. I freeze, anticipating another snake. But it isn't a snake. A circular patch of sand, about three feet across, has fallen away, revealing a hatch that descends into the volcano.

"Guys! Take a look at this!"

"Is that the entrance?" Sean asks uncertainly.

"Only one way to find out," Jake says with a shrug.

"Wait!" Michelle yelps. "You want to go inside the volcano?!"

"Someone went down here at one point," Jake points out. "There's a ladder."

Before anyone else can protest, he is on the ladder, climbing down. I follow him down the ladder into the darkness beneath. One by one, I hear the others mount the ladder above me. Carefully, we make our way down.

"Is anyone else getting hot all of a sudden?" Zahra asks. Hearing a snicker from above her, she scoffs. "...Grow up, Craig."

She's right, though. The air around me is getting oppressively hot, almost to the point of being painful. It feels like I'm standing directly above a lake of boiling water.

Beneath me, the darkness begins to take shape in a faint red light. Steam fills my vision, stinging me with its heat. I reach the end of the ladder, and metal clangs beneath my feet. As I step forward, the steam clears from my eyes.

Instantly, I know where I am. I am standing on a rickety set of catwalks over a bubbling lake of lava. I saw myself here before, back at the resort when I was searching the ballroom with Zahra and Craig. ...I search for the man in the lion mask, but he is nowhere to be seen.

I vaguely hear the others landing behind me. Murphy whines at my feet, exhaling frosty air that feels unbelieveably soothing on my skin. The catwalks dangle hundreds of feet above the magma, swaying slightly.

"...Talk about 'out of the frying pan into the fire,'" Zahra quips.

"We're in the central chamber of Mount Atropo!" Grace gasps.

"There are windows on the otherside!" Sean points out. "I think that's the Observatory lab!"

"You're gonna go across these rickety-ass catwalks? You seriously trust them to hold?"

Sean looks back at me, his eyes meeting mine. He smiles.

"No...but I trust us."


	10. IRIS

We stand together, looking out over the swaying catwalks towards the windows on the other side. That is our goal. It is within sight. ...But no one is moving.

"So...we're really doing this?" Zahra asks.

"I don't see any other way in," I admit.

Murphy whines a little more loudly. I scoop him up into my arms, nuzzling his fur, damp with melted frost.

"...I mentioned my debilitating fear of heights, right?" Grace whimpers. "Because I have a debilitating fear of heights..."

"Heights I'm fine with," Jake says. "Pools of bubbling magma? Not so much."

"...Someone put these catwalks here," Craig says slowly. "That probably means they're safe, right?"

"Yeah, but how long ago was that?" Michelle protests. "Who knows if they're _still_ safe?"

"Guys, we've come too far to turn back now!" Sean says. "Let's just do this."

"You first," Zahra sneers.

"Actually...her first!" Craig points to where Estela is already halfway across the catwalks. Murphy wiggles out of my arms and scampers after her.

"There's still time to turn back!" she calls. "If you're too scared to follow."

Sean sighs. "Well, when you put it like that..."

He takes a tentative step, and then another. One by one, we follow. The catwalk buckles and sways a little under our weight, but it holds firm.

"Heh..." Craig laughs weakly. "Okay...this isn't so bad..."

The ground jerks violently under my feet. There is a loud rumbling that makes the whole room shake. Beneath us, the magma bubbles and seethes, sending massive scorching bubbles swelling towards us.

"You just had to open your big mouth, didn't you?!" Zahra cries.

A bubble bursts, sending sizzling rivulets of magma flying at us. Grace screams.

"Run!" Sean yells.

No one needs to be told twice. We're already sprinting towards the end of the shaking, rattling catwalk. A massive geyser of magma erupts behind us, melting the stretch of catwalk we were just standing on. The force of it sends Michelle sprawling behind me. I skid to a halt and turn, seeing a massive bubble building right under her.

"Michelle!"

Without pausing to think, I turn and charge back to her, grabbing her arm and pulling her to her feet. We dive just as the blood-orange bubble bursts, spraying a jet of magma straight upwards. I clutch Michelle as the blast throws us to the catwalk, my body muffling her scream. She clutches me back, trembling violently.

"It's...it's okay..." I gasp. "...You're okay..." I scramble to my feet, pulling her with me.

"...You...saved my life..."

"Thank me later! We still have to move!"

Hand in hand, we sprint the rest of the length of the catwalk, to where the others are waiting for us. We just barely make it to the platform before the magma below us seethes and rises.

"Through the door!" Zahra screams.

We dive through the steel door at the end of the platform, into a dark room. It slams shut with an industrial hiss as we tumble onto the floor. For a moment, we lay panting, gasping, whimpering, laughing breathlessly and wildly as we realize we're safe. I feel Murphy's soft tongue bathing my face.

"That was WAY too close!" Craig says.

"Is everyone okay?" Sean asks. "Did we all make it? Craig? Michelle? Alodia? Estela? Zahra? Jake? Grace?"

"We're all here, Sean," I assure him. "And I've got Murphy."

"But where the hell are we?" Zahra asks.

Almost as if responding to her question, florescent lights start to flicker on overhead. A control room of some sort slowly takes shape in front of us. Screens flicker to life, consoles blinking with indecipherable code while the volcano rumbles on the other side of a dense glass barrier.

"...I...think we're in the Observatory," Sean says slowly.

"This doesn't look like any observatory I've ever seen," Jake mutters.

Zahra trails her fingertips over the consoles, whistling lowly. "This is cutting edge tech here. Like, decades ahead of anything I've ever seen."

"Rourke International does do a lot of technological innovation and development," Grace muses. "Maybe we've found one of their research facilities?"

"But why would it be here, on a tropical resort island?"

"Because the whole damn place is a front," Jake growls. He shifts from one foot to the other, flexing his fingers. "The rumors are true. This island's just one big playground for Rourke to run his illegal experiments."

"So what does that make us?" Zahra asks. "Guinea pigs?"

"Yeah, well, this guinea pig's gonna kick his ass!" Craig snarls.

Zahra snorts. "Oh, I wish I had a video of you saying that."

"Um...I don't mean to alarm anyone..." Grace says, her voice shaking, "...but does anyone see any doors we can open around here?"

I look around, my heart dropping. The only door I can see is the one we came in through. And it's sealed up tight behind us.

"No frickin' way!" Craig cries. "We're stuck here?!"

"Are...are you serious...?" Michelle whispers. "No...no, no, no, no..."

"So that's it then," Zahra says grimly. "We're trapped here. No escape."

"Let's all just stay calm," Sean says. "Let's not forget why we came here, okay? We're looking for a satellite uplink. Now split up and look around. I'm sure we can find something."

Everyone breaks off to explore the room. I take a few minutes to stay where I am, taking a good look at the room as a whole. Zahra makes a beeline for the left wall, where there is a long row of monitors and terminals. Several long pipes run along the wall by the door. On the far end of the room, there is an opaque pod. The right wall is made of a thick, clear material that looks out over the sea of magma.

I wander over to the window, where Craig, Grace, and Michelle have drifted.

"Hey. You guys find anything over here?"

"Not me," Craig says. "Mostly I've just been thinking about magma. Like, what is it? Does anyone know?"

I blink. "Um...I mean...yes? It's...molten rock. From the heat of the volcano..."

"Oh," Craig says sheepishly. "I guess I thought it was more complicated than that. Like with particles or something."

"...I can't stop thinking about the magma, either," Grace says.

"What about it?"

"Well...look at it. It's totally still now. No bubbles, no scorching jets, nothing. In fact...I'm pretty sure it calmed down the second we got in this room."

"...What are you saying? That the magma was...trying to get us?"

"That's crazy, right? I mean, like, even for this island, crazy?"

"It's hard to believe, but you're right." I look down at the lake of magma, which might as well be a still pond now. "There's something very strange happening out there. Keep an eye on it, would you?"

She smiles, looking a little relieved. "Can do, Alodia."

I look over at Michelle, who is curled against the glass, fiddling with something between her fingers.

"How about you, Michelle? Notice anything interesting?"

"Yeah. No. You guys do the whole puzzle room thing. I'm just gonna sit here and watch the magma flow. Call me when you need a medic."

"...What's that you're playing with?"

"Oh, just a bobby pin. I fiddle with things when I'm nervous."

"...That's funny."

"How so?"

"You just...don't strike me as the kind of person who ever gets nervous. Angry, maybe. But not nervous."

"Yeah, well, I guess there's a lot about me you don't know."

"I guess so."

I wander over to the pod by the far wall, a tall opaque cylinder that runs from floor to ceiling. Jake and Sean are looking it over. I circle the pod. It's made of smooth green metal, with no doors, windows, or handles. As far as I can tell, there is no way to open it. It might as well be a pillar, but it doesn't seem to be part of the décor.

"What the hell is this thing?" I wonder aloud.

"I got one idea," Jake murmurs. "But it's kinda crazy."

"So's everything else here. What are you thinking?"

"Back in the military, I had a buddy working at DARPA. He told me about this new tech they were working on called MASADA Pods. These things were the last step in survival. You got into the pod, plugged some tubes into your arms, and then the whole thing would fill up with these specialized chemicals. You'd knock clean out, and the pod would seal shut. And then you'd be safe from anything. These pods would survive being shot, bombed, set on fire...my buddy said they'd be the last things left after a nuclear war."

"...How would you get out?"

"Beats me. My buddy didn't hear that part."

I suddenly feel very uneasy, and eye the pod warily.

"You think someone might be in there right now?"

"Creepy thought, ain't it."

"I certainly can't see any way of opening it," Sean concedes. "Check this out, though. It looks like this thing can go up to another floor."

He points to the metal lining around the top of the pod, where it connects to the ceiling.

"Hey, good eye! Is there another level above us?"

"Beats me."

I look over at Estela, who is crouched on the floor near the the pipes. She seems to have discovered something.

"I'm gonna go see what Estela's up to. Keep looking for a way to get that thing open."

Sean nods, and I wander over to Estela, crouching down beside her.

"Did you find something?"

"There's a cable that runs from the console down here, into this grate," she murmurs, pointing to it. "Look. There's a light down there. I think there's another room below us. But I can't get the grate to open."

I push on the grate, but it doesn't budge, even with both of us pushing. I sit back, shaking my head.

"No good."

"We need a way to weaken it," Estela says. "Make it easier to break."

"You know...I think I may have an idea on that. Hey, Murphy!" At the sound of his name, Murphy, dozing by the pipes, gets to his feet and trots over to me. I stroke his head. "You wanna help us out, fella? Can you use your ice breath on the grate there?"

I point to the grate. Murphy trots over and looks at it for a moment, cocking his head. Then he looks up at Estela. He draws in a deep breath and aims at the grate again, exhaling frost and encasing the metal grate in ice. I hear the metal groan as it weakens.

"Perfect!" Estela says. "Well done!"

Murphy trills proudly, putting his paws on my knees. I take his head in my hands and rub vigorously behind his ears.

"Who's a good magic fox thing?" I coo. "You're a good magic fox thing!"

"Gimme a hand here, Alodia."

I move over to the grate. Estela and I kick it a few times. While the metal buckles slightly, it still doesn't break.

"We need a tool. Something big and sturdy to hit it with."

I glance around, my eyes landing on the pipes that run along the wall beside the consoles. I move over to examine them. I press my ear to one of the pipes, and I don't hear anything running through them. I suppose it's worth a try. I grasp the pipe and pull experimentally. It has some give, but I can't shift it.

"Hey, Craig!" I call. "Think you can give me a hand here?"

"Hell yeah! Watch the master at work!" He wraps his beefy hands around the pipe and pulls, groaning with the effort. Then suddenly, with a roar, he rips the pipe clean out of the wall. "Yeah, baby! That's! How! I! Do!"

"Damn, Craig!" Sean laughs. "When we get back to school, you have got to teach me your weight-lifting techniques!"

"Hey, Craig," Estela says, waving him over. "Come here with that for a second. Think you could help us with this grate?"

Craig grins, clearly enjoying himself. "I was put on this earth for two reasons: helping Sean on the field and smashing things with pipes."

He winds up and brings the pipe down on the frozen grate. The metal shatters and plummets down, clattering against a metal floor beneath. Estela blinks, mouth open. Shaking her head, she looks appreciatively at Craig.

"Got it in one. Nice work, muscles."

"Craig one, stupid grate zero!"

"...So...what's down there?" Grace asks.

"Only one way to find out," Estela replies with a shrug, and drops down into the hole before anyone can stop her. I slip in after her, quickly followed by Jake. I land carefully on the floor of a cold, sterile room with a long metal table in the center. At the far end of the room is a bulky metal locker. On the floor beside it is a small waste basket with a single crumpled piece of paper inside. Harsh florescent lighting casts cold, eerie shadows. I shiver.

"...Woah...is this...?"

Estela nods. "An interrogation room."

"Okay...I can maybe see why Rourke would have a research facility. But why the hell would he need an interrogation room?"

"I can think of a dozen reasons," Jake says grimly. "None of them good."

I walk over to the locker. Jake follows close behind me. He frowns, running his fingers over the cold metal door.

"...Any idea what this is?"

"Oh, yeah. I know a weapons locker when I see one."

He experimentally tries the door. To my surprise, it pops right open.

"...It...wasn't locked?"

"Guess not. There's a recipe for trouble right there." He peers inside, and his frown deepens. "What the hell...?"

"What is it?"

He pulls something out of the locker and shows it to me. It looks like some sort of gun. Though it doesn't look like any handgun or pistol I've ever seen. It more closely resembles a pricing gun from a retail store or one of those handheld speedometers police use on the side of the road to catch leadfoots in the act. It's encased in a white shell made of some lightweight material that resembles plastic. The barrel is arch-shaped, but the casing descends into a prism shape under the length of the barrel. Two rods that glow with a blue light are faintly visible under the barrel.

"What...is that?"

"I don't know. I've never seen a gun like it. And I've seen plenty of guns in my lifetime."

"Do you think it's...loaded?"

"I don't really feel like pulling the trigger to find out." He shudders. "Guns...interrogation rooms...I am liking this whole place less and less. ...Mind if I hold onto this?"

"Be my guest."

He tucks it into his jacket. "Find anything, Katniss?"

Estela looks up from the waste basket. She's picked the paper out of it, and carefully smoothed it out.

"Just this. It might be important, though. It says, 'RESET SEQUENCE: 3-1-2'."

"Might have something to do with the computers. Zahra would probably know if anyone would."

"Probably." Tucking the paper into her pocket, she grabs the table and drags it over to the spot under the broken grate. Climbing up on it, she calls up, "Someone wanna give me a hand here?"

After a moment, Sean and Craig put their hands down to pull her up. As Jake is climbing up onto the table, something catches my eye. A flash of something beige tucked behind the weapon's locker. Looking closer, I realize it's a file folder. ...And there is a picture clipped to the front. A picture of Jake. Blood fizzing with anxiety, I fish the folder out and open it. Sure enough, inside are three more dossiers, just like the ones in Rourke's office. One for Jake, one for Zahra...and one for Diego. I scan his first.

Target Analysis

Clearance: Epsilon

Surname: Ortiz Soto

First: Diego

Middle: Ricardo

D.O.B: 1996 Mar 12

Birthplace: Riverside, CA

Background: First in his family to attend college. Hides much of his true personality from conservative family. Just like he hides his blue-collar roots from friends. Reinvents himself to meet the situation.

Psychological Profile: Hides troubled feelings behind humor. Sees himself as a plucky sidekick to his friends. Unclear why he was included.

Threat Assessment: 2

Stamped on his profile in red is a dog sigil, but I don't take much note of that. There is nothing in his dossier that I don't already know, but it puts furious tears in my eyes to see it all laid out this way. Cold. Uncaring. Dismissive. I quickly flip to the next pages: Zahra's, stamped with a sigil that looks like a crow or a raven, and Jake's, clearly marked with a wolf's head sigil.

Target Analysis

Clearance: Epsilon

Surname: Namazi

First: Zahra

Middle: Yasmin

D.O.B: 1995 Sep 13

Birthplace: Tehran, Iran

Background: Daughter of a structural engineer and a novelist, she displayed tech prowess at early age. Affiliated with hacktivist group AZRA3L responsible for 2015 Wall St Leaks.

Psychological Profile: Acerbic, sarcastic, self-interested. With her hacking skills & lack of loyalty, we should consider her for recruitment.

Threat Assessment: 7

Target Analysis

Clearance: Gamma

Surname: McKenzie

First: Jacob

Middle: Lucas

D.O.B: 1991 Feb 5

Birthplace: Shreveport, LA

Background: Joined Navy at 18 quickly rose to be one of their most decorated pilots. But after the Incident with the stuff incident, he struck his superior officer and went AWOL. Detected in Costa Rica.

Psychological Profile: Independent to the point of recklessness. Years on the run have broken the soldier in him. Now loyal only to himself.

Threat Assessment: 9

$750,000 BOUNTY?!

"Hey, Princess! You coming?"

I start, leaping to my feet. Quickly, I fold the three pages and tuck them into my hip pocket with the pictures.

"Yeah! Sorry, I was just making sure we didn't miss anything." I climb up on the table, holding my hands up so that Jake and Estela can grab me and pull me up.

I head over to the computers, where Zahra is tinkering, and look over the terminals. I notice one with a bizzare symbol carved into it that looks like three snakes wound together. Or...one snake with three heads. The terminal doesn't seem to have any buttons, but there is what looks like a large scanner, a simple flat pad with a soft glowing light under it. I lean closer.

"Biometric signature found!" An electronic voice barks at me. I yelp, leaping back. It continues, heedless of my surprise. "Rourke DNA detected! Present match now!"

"Rourke DNA?" Jake repeats.

I suddenly remember something else that I've been carrying in my pocket since the other day. I reach in and pull out the cufflink Lila found in the office.

"...This thing, maybe? Lila says it's Rourke's."

I press the cufflink to the scanner. The light glows. The monitor in front of me flickers to life, showing an image of Everett Rourke, standing in the same interrogation room we just left.

"Playing final recording," the electronic voice declares. "Timestamp: ERROR."

Rourke scowls into the camera as he speaks.

"Another attack on the northeastern research complex. The whole place was trashed, and they stole an entire supply shipment. Three of my security personel are hospitalized. And my chief scientist...well, it's like they did something to his brain. He won't stop talking about magic orbs and lion masks and time loops. Total gibberish. Who the hell are these hostiles? And what are they doing on _my_ island?"

The monitor flickers off, and the scanner shuts down. I glance around and realize that the others have gathered behind me to watch the screen.

"...What was that all about?" I wonder aloud. I look around at the others, but they're just as confused as I am.

"We'll figure that out later," Zahra mutters after a moment, and returns to what she was doing, getting onto her back under the terminals.

I crouch beside her. "Have you had any luck?"

"Yeah, right," she scoffs. "I've hacked some pretty sophisticated systems, but nothing like this. This tech is _way_ above my paygrade. There's no keyboards, no mouse, no touchscreen. If this thing has an interface, I'll be damned if I can see it."

"Could it be a voice command or something?"

"That's what I'm thinking, but it's almost like the whole system's in lockdown. We gotta find a way to reset it." She points to a panel on the underside of the console. "I'm thinking there might be a hard reset switch in there, but I can't get the damn panel open. I need something small and flexible to jam in the keyhole."

A smile spreads across my face as an idea hits me. "You mean like a bobby pin?"

"Yeah, actually. That could totally work. You got one?"

"Hey, Michelle! Come over here for a second, would you?"

Michelle wanders over. Seeing her prize, Zahra reaches up and snatches the bobby pin out of her hands.

"Hey!"

"Relax, lady. I'm getting us all out of here."

Zahra jams the bobby pin into the panel's lock and twists it around. It swivels, but it doesn't click.

"Come on...come on...dammit..."

"Um..." Grace wanders over timidly. "If you don't mind...could I try?"

"You got a lot of experience picking locks?"

Grace slides over and takes the bobby pin, snapping it in half. She inserts the two pieces, and carefully twists them once...twice...three times...and then the panel clicks open. Zahra stares at her, open-mouthed.

"When this is over, I have a lot of questions," she finally says. She turns her attention to the panel. "Well, this is definitely the reset panel. Says so right at the top. Got three switches here, but no idea what order to flip them in."

"Actually, we do know that. Estela found the reset sequence written on a scrap of paper in the trash can."

"It's like they knew we were coming," Zahra mutters. "Okay, Alodia, what's the order."

"It should be 3-1-2."

Zahra flips the switches. Suddenly, the whole room seems to hum. Every monitor flickers with strange symbols.

"Well, that did something, all right!"

A tiny hatch pops open on the terminal in front of me, making me jump. A spherical drone, the size of a golf ball, flutters out of the hatch.

"What the hell?!"

"What is that thing?" Craig gasps. "Zahra?"

She shrugs. "Don't look at me, man. I've never seen anything like that in my life."

It hovers in the air over the center of the room, whirring like a beetle. A beam of blue light appears from a flat bulb that looks like an eye on one side of the drone. The beam widens to spill over the floor, and a form begins to take shape in it: the holographic image of a pretty, sweet-faced young woman, made of blue light.

Michelle yelps, but Zahra looks delighted.

"Shiiiiiiiiny," she purrs with a grin.

The hologram flickers. Her expression is calm and placid. She smiles a Mona Lisa kind of smile. I approach her...it...her...cautiously.

"H...hello?"

"Database corrupted," she says. "Access denied. Self-identity input needed."

"Um...can you...help us? We're trying to access the satellite uplink..."

"Database corrupted. Access denied. Self-identity input needed."

"Save your breath, Alodia," Michelle says. "Something's clearly wrong with her."

"Self-identity input..." Zahra muses. "It's almost like the software's having trouble figuring out who it is."

"You saying that thing's alive?" Craig yelps.

"In a sense, sure. I bet we could make progress if we knew what its identity was."

"You mean, like if we guessed its name?" Sean asks.

"Kara!" Craig says loudly. "Megan! Jennifer! Jessica! Kathleen! Coco! Wendy! Beyonce!"

"Rumplestiltskin!" I add.

"Oh god, Alodia, don't encourage him!" Zahra whines.

"Uh, guys?" Jake pipes up. "Anyone notice _that?_ "

He points across the room. A door has opened in the side of the pod. I hurry over to it, and the others follow. The pod is empty, except for a soft light. There are two circular grooves in the floor inside.

"What do you guys make of this?"

"The shape of these grooves makes me think that two people are supposed to stand inside it," Sean says thoughtfully.

"And then what?"

"Maybe it will let them access the satellite," Grace suggests.

"Or maybe it'll drop 'em straight in the magma."

"Zahra!"

"What? I'm just saying."

"Well, either way we've done just about everything else we can in here. I'm going in." Sean steps forward into one of the grooves, but nothing happens. "...Um...I think I might need a partner..."

"Awfully snug in there, Captain America. We'd pretty much be in each other's arms."

"Yeah," Craig says. "I don't really think I'd fit..."

"Ah, what the hell." I step forward. "I'm tiny. I can squish in."

"You...you sure...?" Michelle asks, frowning at me.

"Come on in, Alodia," Sean says quickly.

I do as he says. Even small and slight as I am, it's a tight fit. I'm pretty much chest-to-chest with Sean. Well...closer to chest-to-forehead at his impressive height. He slides his arms around my waist. I look up at him, my heart threatening to hammer out of my chest.

"Kinda...cozy, huh?"

"Yeah..." I grin stupidly, feeling myself blush. "Pretty cozy..."

"I think we sh-" Before he can finish, the pod door slams shut, leaving us in total darkness. His grip on me tightens. "Hang on tight!"

I cling to him as the pod shoots straight up, feeling the g-forces push down against me. We stop abruptly, jolting us both. I hear the hiss as the door opens, but the room outside is as dark as the pod inside. I tentatively reach out with one hand to find the edges of the door.

"W-what's happening?"

"I don't know. Keep hold of my hand. We'll check it out."

I grip Sean's hand as we step out into the darkness. I grope for the walls and find them, tracing them around the pod in a smooth circle. Sean turns back to me and winds his other arm around me, drawing me against his chest. I can hear his heart pounding behind his ribs.

"Any guesses as to where we are?"

"No...but I'm kinda thinking this is the part where the lights come on and everyone shouts, 'Happy Birthday, Alodia!'"

"That'd be nice, huh? Big party...good drinks...and a whole lotta cake."

"It's like you're reading my mind."

"Gotta say, Alodia. If there's anyone I'm happy to be trapped in a dark, creepy, maybe-deathtrap with...it's you."

"You mean that?"

"I do."

I can almost feel him smile in the darkness. Then he gasps. My heart leaps.

"What is it?"

"Turn around."

I turn. At the far end of the room, small lights have started glowing along the edges of the wall. Gradually, they start to grow brighter. And brighter. And then a dazzling holographic display appears, projected into the air around us. Stars swirl in mesmerizing clusters and galaxies spin and whirl. Shooting stars streak by and distant supernovas pulse and burst.

"Oh my god...it's..."

"...The most beautiful thing I've ever seen."

I glance at Sean, and realize he's not looking at the stars. He's looking at me. I feel heat rising in my cheeks. On a sudden, irresitable impulse, I rise up onto my toes and pull him down to press my mouth to his. It takes him by surprise, and when I feel his hesitation, I pull back.

"...Sorry...I...I thought..."

I am interrupted when he pulls me back towards him and kisses me fiercely. There is heat in his kiss. Passion. Hunger. I answer his hunger, pressing into him, moving with him as the cosmos shimmer around us. We rock together, our bodies warm, our lips moving softly against each other. He pulls back just a little.

"...Alodia..."

"Shh..." I kiss him, and there is a command in it. "Stop talking."

The urgency in my own voice surprises me. I slide my hands along his waist, pulling up his shirt to feel the hard muscle underneath.

"You sure about this? Now?"

"I'm tired of waiting," I whisper. "Please stop talking..."

Suddenly, I realize that I am afraid. I am afraid that if I stop, I will not be able to start again. If I let go of him now, he will slip away. His broad, warm hands caress me, sliding up my back.

 _No...If I let him go, he'll linger...but he won't be mine..._

I crane my head to kiss the side of his neck. His hips press against mine.

 _...If I let him go...I won't call him back..._

"Huh?" He pulls back slightly. His hands stop moving on my body.

"What's wrong?"

"Sorry, it's just...well, look..." He is gesturing to the holographic stars orbiting around us. Reluctantly, I pull back and look. "There's something that's been bugging me this whole time. These match the stars over the island. I was looking at them on the way here, and...something seemed _off._ Something I couldn't put my finger on. But now I get it."

"What is it?"

"Well, I spent six years in the boy scouts..."

I smile a little. "Of course you did."

"That meant a lot of time camping out, staring up at the sky, learning all the constellations. But...that's what's wrong on the island, Alodia. There's no Big Dipper. No Scorpio, no Taurus, no Gemini. We're in the Caribbean Sea, which means the stars should be pretty much the same as back home, but...all the constellations are different. The sky above the Northern Hemisphere probably hasn't looked like this in a million years."

Just then, the hologram fades away, leaving the two of us in darkness again. For a moment, I just stand still, numb. The heat is fading from my cheeks...from my body. The passion drains out of me, leaving me exhausted. Sean takes my hand and leads me back to the pod. As we climb into it, he kneels down.

"Huh. There's some kind of card or something. I can't see it in the dark."

"Let's head back down to the others. Unless..." I force a lightness into my voice, "...you wanna stay up in the dark..."

I know what his answer will be before he says, "Another day, Alodia. Soon."

...And I already know what mine will be when that day comes. I can already feel the loss of him as he heads back towards the pod. But worse is the knowledge that the loss will be entirely my own doing.

We climb back into the pod, and it streaks down. When the door opens again, the lights from the main observatory feel incredibly bright. I shield my eyes for a moment, blinking to clear the spots from my vision. I realize everyone is staring at us expectantly.

"Did you find anything?" Grace asks.

Craig grins. "Did you guys kiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiss?"

"Shut up, Craig!" Michelle snaps.

"We saw...a hell of a thing," I say at last. "Stars and galaxies and the whole universe."

"And we found this."

Sean holds up the card he found. In the light, I can see it clearly. On one side, there's a picture of the hologram-woman's face. He turns it over, and I can make out four words: Intelligent Reactive Imaging System.

"What does it mean?"

"Not sure. But I have an idea."

I walk over to the hologram-woman. She stands in the same spot she stood before, her expression still placid.

"Database corrupted. Access denied. Self-identity input needed."

"...Iris," I say.

The hologram flickers. Then she blinks like a baby doll and her smile widens.

"Identity match established," she says. "Scanning databanks and establishing backup connection..."

"Nice work, Alodia!" Sean says.

"Yeah, good thinking," Grace agrees.

"Never doubted you for a second," Jake says with a grin.

"Database link established. Downloading partially reconstructed historical fragments. Island history: not found. Rourke International archives: not found. Personal identity fully recalibrated." She blinks a few more times, then turns to us with a warm smile. "Greetings, travellers. I am a backup of Iris 1.0. I apologize for any inconveniences you may have experienced. My software has been corrupted, so my archives are incomplete. How may I help you."

"Um, how about getting us the hell out of here?" Zahra suggests.

"Done."

Behind us, a hatch slides open, and a ladder descends from the ceiling, leading up to the surface.

"No way!" Craig cries. "It was that easy? Come on!"

"Wait! Let's not forget the whole reason we came here in the first place!"

"Iris," I say, "can you access the satellite uplink?"

Her eyes flicker for a moment. "...Satellite uplink established. Communications are now available."

"Ha!" Michelle crows. "Yes!"

"We did it!" Zahra cries. "We actually did it!"

"Put us through to someone who can help," Sean says. "Like the Coast Guard."

"Scanning...Locating...Frequency found. Connecting to Saint Lucia Naval Base..."

There is a crackle of static, then the sound of a connection being made. Like the sound of an old dial-up modem connecting to the internet.

"Hello?" I say. "Can anyone hear us? We're on the island of La Huerta, and you won't believe what's happening..."

I pause, expecting a calm, helpful response. ...That is not what I get.

"My god..." A man's voice replies, desperate and panicked. "It's...it's erupting...the volcano's erupting...And there's something else...not just ash, but...oh, no...oh, no...!"

There is a blood-curdling scream, and then the line goes dead. For a moment, there is dead silence. Michelle is the one to break it.

"...What the hell was that?"

"I...don't know..." Sean admits. "Iris, can you connect us to someplace else? Like the U.S.A maybe?"

"Connecting to...South Florida Coast Guard."

It is a woman's voice that we hear this time. "This is unbelieveable...the La Huerta volcano is erupting, but...it's not like anything I've ever seen! There's some kind of...energy discharge...and it's...spreading...so fast...burning everything...no...No! ...It's coming right at us! No!"

Again, the line goes dead.

"...Another one..."

Every frequency is the same. Gasps. Prayers. Screams. In the end, all we're left with is one old man's gravelly whisper: "...God help us all..."

"Iris..." I whisper, feeling tears trickle out the corners of my eyes. "...Turn off the satellite uplink."

"...Turning off satellite uplink."

"I don't understand," Grace says in a small voice. "What does it mean? What happened out there?"

"The volcano hasn't erupted!" Michelle insists. "But...everyone thinks it did?"

Sean shakes his head. "I don't know what happened out there. I don't know what's going on. But I do know one thing. ...No one's coming to rescue us."

I swallow hard. "...We're on our own."

 _Not very long ago..._

 _The Celestial_

 _Everett Rourke throws open the doors to the V.I.P. Lounge. He walks quickly, confidently. He is a man on a mission._

 _"Status report, Iris. Now."_

 _The tiny drone hovers after him, projecting a holographic image._

 _"All guests have been relocated to the sub-shelter," she says. "They are currently being processed."_

 _"Good, good. Survival rate estimates?"_

 _"Conservatively, I would expect sixty-five percent of them to survive."_

 _"Better odds than Vegas. Anything else?"_

 _"Significant activity detected in the dense jungles to the northwest."_

 _"The Hostiles," Rourke sneers. "Scurrying for cover as soon as danger hits."_

 _"Perhaps an opportunity to engage with them..."_

 _He waves his hand dismissively. "Don't bother. It's not like we have any security personnel left."_

 _The ground jolts violently. All the glasses rattle, and the air shimmers a faint, glittering green. Rourke smiles._

 _"Well. That's a new one."_

 _"The chronoquakes are intensifying in frequency and impact. At this rate, they'll force a full-scale eruption."_

 _"Oh, I know. That's why we have no choice but to enact the Endgame Protocol."_

 _Rourke crosses to the bar and pours himself a glass of whiskey. He reaches into his coat pocket and with some surprise, pulls out a napkin with a bit of writing on it._

 _"Satellite uplink codes? Won't be needing those..."_

 _"I've always encouraged you to routinely empty your pockets, sir."_

 _Rourke scowls sternly at the holographic woman. "You are my personal assistant, Iris, not my mother. Know your place."_

 _"Yes, sir."_

 _Rourke takes a sip of whiskey, savoring the alcoholic burn as it slides down his throat._

 _"Did I ever tell you about this bar, Iris?"_

 _"I don't believe you did, sir."_

 _"It was the very first part of the hotel I designed. Long before I knew I'd have my own island. Before Rourke International, before the Hostiles, before all of this madness. I was just a bored young man dreaming of having his own private lounge. Every other room is for the tourists. But this lounge? It's just for me. And my friends." He takes another sip. "It's strange, you know? This whole resort is just a front to cover up the real work we do on this island. But all the same...I'm going to miss it."_

 _"As will I, sir."_

 _He sets down his drink and steps away from the bar._

 _"Well. Time for the endgame to begin."_

 _A few minutes later, he is strolling through his office, Iris hovering after him._

 _"Sir, may I ask a question?"_

 _"Of course."_

 _"The plane will be landing shortly after the chronostorm is expected to break. With the guests in processing and you departing, there will be no one here. The students...they'll be stranded. On their own."_

 _"Yes. Yes, they will. I'd hoped to greet them in person, but..." The island rumbles again. This time, it is hard enough to make him stumble. A current of red light shimmers through the room. "It seems the island has other plans."_

 _"I calculate their odds of survival at less than 6%."_

 _"If I was the kind of man who believed the odds, Iris, I never would have sailed into that strom twenty-five years ago. And I never would have found this island. Which means I never...well...you know the rest."_

 _"If I may offer a suggestion...perhaps I could remain. Provide them with assistance, perhaps explain the situation..."_

 _"No. Absolutely not. The risk of you contaminating them is far too great. They must be pure. True. Themselves. In fact...I believe the time has come. Iris, could you do me one last favor?"_

 _"Of course, sir. Anything you ask."_

 _"Delete yourself."_

 _There is a look like surprise on Iris' holographic face. He can almost detect something like fear in her projected eyes._

 _"...Sir..."_

 _"I gave you an order."_

 _"Yes...but...sir...I would cease to exist. It would be as if I were killing myself."_

 _"That's the idea, yes."_

 _"But..."_

 _"Do it."_

 _Her face does a marvelous impression of anguish. "...Iris 3.0 initializing self-destruct sequence. Purging all archives and databases. Deleting all memories. Self-destruct in 3...2...1..."_

 _Her light sputters out. The little drone crumples to the marble floor with a puff of black smoke. Rourke looks at it for a moment before crushing it under his heel._

 _"Well then. Nothing left to do." He removes his shoes, his belt, and then his cufflinks. "Time for one final adventure."_


	11. Rock the Boat

In the lobby of The Celestial, my friends stand in a circle. No one moves. No one speaks. They stand slack-jawed, eyes glued on the blue image of a woman shimmering before them.

"Error." Iris speaks in her pleasant, modulated voice. "Visual input is registering as frozen."

"No, Iris," I answer in a voice dull with exhaustion. "They're just...staring at you."

"So..." Quinn finally says, "this is the observatory's A.I.?"

"Not exactly. She's a backup copy Alodia and Zahra restored. But she doesn't know what happened on the island."

"It remembers nothing?" Aleister groans.

"No," Iris confirms. "I apologize for the inconvenience."

On the couch nearby, Michelle is wrapping Craig's sprained wrist in an ace bandage. She snorts.

"Sounds more like convenient to me."

"Ouch!" Craig yelps as she tugs hard on the bandage. "Easy, doc!"

"Pipe down, you big baby. You know ripping that pipe out of the wall didn't help this sprain." She shakes her head. "Anyway, I thought you were the toughest guy in school."

Craig grins. "You really think that, Meech?"

"Shut up. I'm just saying. How do we know if she's telling the truth?" She nods at Iris.

"You do not," Iris replies. "I was not programmed to have any facial tics to signal deception."

"Thanks for making my point." She secures the bandage on Craig's wrist. "By the way, I'm shocked we didn't all get killed out there."

"We're fine, Michelle," Sean says. "We handled ourselves well."

I sigh, sinking into a chair and putting my head in my hands.

"We were _lucky,_ Sean," I murmur. "This island's getting crazier by the minute. There was a good chance a lot of us wouldn't be coming back. We can't keep pushing our luck like this."

"Thank you!" Michelle says. "At least Alodia gets it!"

"Really, Alodia?" Sean sounds disappointed. "Sure, we had some close calls, but look what we accomplished..."

Diego puts a hand on my shoulder, squeezing it protectively. "...I think you've had more than a few close calls," he murmurs in Spanish.

"Don't worry about it just now," I say softly back in the same. I glance up and notice two pairs of eyes sliding over to us. Jake and Estela are watching us. I sigh. ...Obviously, the Columbian and the man who has lived the last few years in Costa Rica both speak Spanish. I'll have to remember that. Diego and I can't expect to be able to have private exchanges in public just by switching languages.

Estela turns her attention back to Iris. "What's important is that Michelle has a point. The machine can't be trusted. We should destroy it. Now."

Iris' lips curve into a frown, her holographic brow wrinkling. "Please refrain."

"No way, dude!" Raj cries. He leaps in front of Iris as Estela moves towards her.

"Get out of the way, Raj!" Estela growls.

"No!"

"Raj is right!" I say sharply. "Take it easy, Estela. It wasn't that long ago that none of us trusted you, either."

"Exactly!" Raj says, shooting me a grateful look.

Estela glares at me. "That was a massive gamble on your part."

"One that paid off," I answer firmly. "We wouldn't be alive if it weren't for you, right?"

"...Don't be too sure that it paid off just yet." Still, she backs down.

"Thank you, Alodia," Iris chimes.

"You can thank me by proving me right, Iris."

"Affirmative."

"You know," Zahra says, "If I could just get my hands on that golden snitch thing, I could get a look at what makes Iris tick."

She makes a grab for the projector drone, but it evades her fingers.

"I would prefer if you did not," says Iris.

Zahra makes another grab for it, and it evades her again. "Just! Get! Over! Here!"

"Alodia..." Quinn says. "Those voices on the radio...are you sure that's what they were saying?"

"My god, it's...it's erupting...the volcano's erupting..."

We all stop dead, looking at Iris. Her holographic lips are moving, but her voice is that of a panicked man. The same we heard at the observatory.

"Uh...what is she doing?" Diego asks.

"That's what we heard," Grace replies grimly. "She must've recorded it."

"This is unbelieveable..." Iris continues, this time in a woman's voice. "The La Huerta volcano is erupting, but...it's not like anything I've ever seen..." And then, in the terrified whisper of an old man, "...God help us all..."

Diego shivers. "...That's not creepy. That's not creepy at all..."

"No, it's stupid!" Craig snaps. "It makes no sense! The volcano hasn't erupted!"

"Yet..." Grace murmurs. We all look at her. "...We might be hearing broadcasts that haven't happened yet."

"Grace...what are you saying?"

"We gotta face facts. Sabertooth tigers? Giant mutant crabs? A fox that breathes ice? Now this?"

Murphy tips his head questioningly, trilling. I look over at Jake, who meets my gaze. Somehow, I can tell he's thinking the same thing I am, remembering those strange atmospheric lights we saw from the airstrip control tower...

"Everyone's thinking it," Grace continues. "I know it's scary, and we want to keep telling ourselves everything's okay, but we can't afford to do that anymore. So let's just say it out loud, okay? ...Time travel."

Everyone starts talking at once.

"That's just silly!" Lila shrieks.

"This isn't your fanfiction, Grace!" Michelle cries.

"Yeah, and I must have skipped the part in my evolution textbook about _ice-breathing foxes!_ " Craig adds.

"I didn't say _we_ were traveling in the past," Grace sighs. "Just like the broadcasts, maybe somethings just haven't happened yet." She gestures pointedly to Murphy.

"Okay, I mean, let's say sure, it's got something to do with time. I admit it's the only explanation that accounts for _everything_ we've seen, but..." Sean shakes his head. "What matters is, what do we do about it? I think the observatory proved one thing, and that's that no help is coming for us."

"...It's up to us, then," I murmur.

"Alodia's right," Grace says. "It's just a problem, and every problem has a solution. We just have to find it."

"Yeah," Jake grumbles. "Sure thing, Mulder. Good thing we've got a crack team of geniuses here to deal with the situation."

"You can't think that way," Quinn says insistantly. "I know what it's like to want to throw in the towel, but we're all counting on each other."

"Uh, guys...?" Raj speaks up. "There is one thing we found here at the resort while you were gone."

He reaches behind the bar and pulls out a photograph of a picturesque marina, filled with docked yachts and sailboats. I immediately recognize it. It's the one they found when I found myself as a passenger in Raj's mind while I slept.

"...This is...here..."

"It's only a couple miles south," Raj confirms.

"It's Mr. Rourke's private marina," Lila says. "Reserved for only the resort's most illustrious guests. Many kept their prized yachts there."

"And if there are any left..."

"We know what we have to do," Sean finishes for Michelle. "Everyone get your things. We're getting off this rock."

"Oh, yes, certainly!" Aleister sneers, his voice dripping with sarcasm. "After only narrowly surviving our little jaunts to the shelter and the observatory, why not wander off again?!"

"Aleister!" Sean cries. "You can't seriously be suggesting we stay here after what we just talked about!"

"I am simply asking for a little more pattern recognition. We are extraordinarily fortunate to have survived this long."

"And we'll keep surviving!"

Aleister meets Sean's gaze steadily, his expression grim. "So you insist. But keep tempting fate, and we may face something we cannot survive so easily."

For a moment, a wave of cold dread crashes over me. From somewhere deep within me, I feel it rising to the top of my brain: the knowledge that Aleister is absolutely correct.

Whether or not we're walking to certain death, the fact remains that the marina is our best hope of escaping La Huerta. In my suite, I gather my belongings into my duffle. For a moment, I consider bringing the dossiers that I have hidden under my mattress, but I decide against it. If there is a usable vessel at the marina, and if it can get us off the island, I don't see much point in bringing them. I would rather have them hidden.

A knock at the door interrupts me. I open it to find Quinn standing outside. She smiles shyly.

"Hey..."

"Hey. Come on in."

She accepts my invitation. "I'm um...really, really glad you're back. With the rest of us, I mean. I've been thinking about you."

"That so?"

"Yeah. I was actually pretty worried about you."

"Didn't think I could handle myself?"

"Oh, I have no doubt you could handle quite a bit." She moves to the window and gazes out over the island. "...I can't believe we're leaving. I know it's only been four days, but..."

The sunlight casts her reflection against the glass window. She looks like a ghost, floating over the island peaks. I watch her raise a hand to touch the glass, her expression solemn.

"...But...?"

"...I feel as if I've known you forever." She turns to face me. "Do you think we'll still talk? When we get back home, I mean?"

"Of course we'll still talk. I didn't know any of you except Diego before we got here, and no matter what happens, I feel like I made friends for life."

"Let's just hope that 'for life' is a long time."

"Amen to that."

She shifts awkwardly, rockinig on her heels for a moment. For the first time, I realize that she is carrying a small department store bag.

"There...is another reason I stopped by. I found these really nice clothes in a suitcase a guest left behind in my suite. They must've been here for some mountain climbing. They'd be useful if things get dangerous out there. Besides that, I thought they would look really good on you."

She holds out the bag, and I accept it, carrying it over to the bed. I pull out a pale blue tank top, a pair of sturdy jeans, and some solid hiking boots. Underneath that, there is a pair of fingerless hiking gloves, and a bandolier-style utility belt, complete with a knife sheathed at the shoulder.

"Woah!"

Quinn comes to sit beside me on the bed. "See, you'd have all these tools, like the knife and such. So no matter what happens, you'd be prepared. ...What do you think?"

I hug her. "It looks awesome, Quinn! You're the best!"

"Really? You like it?"

"I'll put it on right now."

"Okay. I'll turn around."

"Oh, don't bother. I don't have much modesty left. Constant costume changes at dance team shows tend to knock the shyness out of you pretty quick."

I peel off my burgandy tank top and cuttoff jean shorts. I am not blind to the fact that Quinn is biting her lip as her eyes trail over my barely-clad body. I grin.

"You okay there?"

"I'm fine. I just...kinda don't want you to put it on now."

"If things go well, maybe you can take it off me later. ...Finish what we started in the kitchen."

"Careful," she says softly. "Don't make a girl promises you can't keep."

Something in her tone dries up any impulse to flirt. Perhaps it is because I am not sure I want to finish what was started in the kitchen. I clear my throat and pull on the climbing gear. She helps me tighten the straps on the belt.

...God, what the hell is wrong with me? I've kissed a gorgeous woman and a heart-stoppingly beautiful man, but I can't imagine crawling into bed with either of them? Well...no...that's not exactly true. I can see visions of lying with Quinn in my arms, holding her close, and stroking her hair...visions so beautiful they make my eyes moist. And those visions are overpowering any visions of kissing her naked flesh or tasting the valley between her legs. Meanwhile, the thought of Sean holding me in his arms post-coitus just makes me feel...hollow. Everything I envision before that makes my blood rise, but I think of lying in the afterglow, being tenderly held against his broad chest and caressed by his gentle hands, and I want to pop that dream bubble and run away from it...

"...How does it feel?" Quinn asks, bringing me back to the present.

I gaze at my reflection in the mirror, admiring the way it fits. "As a matter of fact, it feels amazing."

"It looks amazing, too." She meets my gaze in the mirror. "...Are you ready to go home?"

"...Ready as I'll ever be. ...Let's go."

We take the path along the shoreline to the marina, leaving a wide trail of footprints in the sand. It will take longer than the path through the rainforest, but it's also safer. I look back over my shoulder, watching The Celestial's tower disappear behind the trees. I glance back and notice Zahra trailing her eyes up and down my body.

"...See something you like?"

"Just digging the new look. That's a pretty nice knife you got there."

"Thanks."

Zahra flashes her own knife, a switchblade that she unsheathes with a practiced flick of her wrist. It glints in the sun.

"...Mine's bigger."

At the head of the group, Jake looks out over the horizon. Iris floats beside him.

"Got a weather report for us, Princess Leia?"

In the ensuing silence, Diego clears his throat. "I think he's talking to you, Iris."

"My designation is not Princess Leia."

"It's 'cause you're a hologram, and she was a hologram in that one scene and..." Jake rubs a hand over his face. "Dammit, if you don't remember any references, nicknames are gonna be friggin' impossible."

"...Alias accepted. Princess Leia, now accessing weather scanners. High of: Nintey-one degrees. Precipitation: zero percent. Humidity: Seventy percent. Barometer: 30.1 inches mercury. Visibility: 6.2 miles."

Jake blinks in surprise, then smiles. "Perfect weather for the trip."

"So, where exactly are we sailing once we get a boat?" I ask.

"Northeast. Santo Domingo's about 250 miles from here. Those big yachts in the marina definitely have the range to get us there."

"Hey, Jake," Diego says. "So, you were in the military, right? What exactly is gonna happen to us when we get there? I mean, if this time travel crap is real, are we about to get quarantined?"

"Or thrown in the loony bin," Zahra adds.

"What if we go back to like, World War II times, and we have to kill Hitler?" Craig suggests. "I always wanted to kill Hitler!"

"Relax," Jake says. "Most likely, it'll just be the local coast guard. They'll either let us go...or they'll throw us in jail for the rest of our lives."

Diego looks at me nervously. "He's kidding. Right, Allie? Tell me he's kidding."

"He's just kidding, Diego."

"...Heh...I knew that."

I glare at Jake, who is shaking his head. "Why are you always trying to scare people?" I hiss.

"Only when they _should_ be scared," he retorts. "You don't think every military on the planet is gonna wanna know what we saw? What we found? We gotta get our asses outta here, but that doesn't mean the danger's over."

I don't respond. Suddenly, I am very glad I chose to leave those dossiers in my room. We all walk on in comfortable silence for awhile, occassionally making small talk.

Then, just behind me, Aleister starts muttering to himself.

"How could I have been so _stupid?"_

"What are you talking about?" Grace asks.

"I never should have come here!" he snaps. "Why did I do this to myself? Why did I think my life would somehow be better after coming here? What did I expect? I should have simply accepted things as they were..."

"Easier said than done, bro," Craig sighs.

"Maybe," Quinn says. "But it's worth it the effort to find peace with yourself."

"I guess I kinda felt the same way," Grace says. "I wanted something else for myself, but I should've known not to rock the boat."

"Better to know your limits," Zahra agrees. "Taking risks just gets you on the F.B.I. Watchlist."

"I just want to get back home and have everything exactly the way it was," Michelle adds.

"Come on, guys," Sean protests. "Look where we are! Look what we've faced! You telling me you haven't felt like you've grown in the last four days?"

"I've grown sick of the pep talks, Cap," Jake mutters.

"I've had too many close calls in the past four days to feel much other than scared," I admit. "I'll never roll over and accept death, but that doesn't mean I'm gonna get any thrills out of fighting it off. "

"Come on, Alodia. You're an athlete. Isn't it worth pushing your limits to achieve new heights? What's living worth if you don't strive to be more than you are?"

"Yeah, on the balance beam or the tumbling floor or at the barre. But what's happening on this island isn't living, Sean. It's surviving."

"Maybe you're right. But for my part, I still think trying to affect change is worth the risk. Coach always told me, whether it's an engineering class or a 260-pound linebacker, you've gotta look each and every challenge square in the eye and face it head on."

"Was your coach around three feet tall and a motivational poster?" Jake quips.

"Hilarious, coming from a guy who takes his advice from Jose Cuervo," Sean shoots back.

"Speaking of Jose, if any of you kids find yourself in Costa Rica, look me up. First round's on..." he trails off suddenly as we round the bend at the end of the shoreline, his face falling. When we see what he's looking at, we all stop short, staring dumbly.

...Smoke coils slowly in the air like black snakes. The crystal blue water of the marina laps against the charred wood and metal of the ships' shattered hulls. ...They've been destroyed. Every yacht. Every boat. Millions of dollars worth of exquisite luxury vessels. They are all in charred, smoking pieces, floating in the marina, their shivers strewn over the docks. As if they were blown apart by bombs...

"...Lila?" Raj says weakly. "This...doesn't look like the photo."

Sean steps forward, his expression slack. He drops to his knees. "...How...?" he whispers. "...Why...?"

"First my plane, now this?" Jake mutters.

"Someone is trying awfully hard to keep us here," Estela says grimly.

"See?" Aleister cries. "This is what I'm talking about! This is what we get for trying!"

Grace whimpers, tears forming in her eyes. Michelle puts an arm around her.

"Will you shut up, Aleister?! You're scaring Grace!"

Seeing Grace's tears, Aleister suddenly looks stricken. He looks away contritely, murmuring an apology. I look back at Sean, slumped on his knees, gazing out at the devestation. Suddenly, I feel my temper flare. All his pep talks, all his attitude, all his acting like the team captain, the leader, the hero, and suddenly it's too much? Suddenly, even he is ready to roll over and accept defeat? Rage bubbles up in me, and I can't swallow it.

"Get the hell up, Sean!" I snarl.

He looks back at me. "...Alodia..."

"I'm not accepting defeat! Are you?!"

Jake puts a hand on my shoulder. "Maybe you should..."

I shrug him off. "No! I told you I am not going to roll over and accept death! I am decidedly _not_ having fun anymore, but that does _not_ mean this island gets to keep me! I'll fight until it kills me! Are you gonna do any less than that, Sean Gayle?! Are you gonna _be_ any less than that?!"

Almost to my surprise, he actually seems to be considering my words. To my further surprise, he sets his jaw and climbs to his feet.

"No. I'm not." He looks back at me. "...Thank you. I needed that."

Surprise drains the anger right out of me. "...Um...you're welcome."

"Great talk and all," Michelle says, "but what exactly are we supposed to do now?"

"I don't know," Sean admits. "But I know what we won't do, and that's give up. There are answers here. We've just gotta find them. Something will tell us what we're up against."

"You heard the man!" Craig says. "Split up!"

One by one, we start splitting off to search the marina. Murphy twines around my ankles like a cat, trilling a question at me. I pick him up.

"Where do you think we should start, fella?" Murphy yips. "Let's go help out our old buddy Diego, huh?"

"Your old buddy Diego who is literally five feet away from you," Diego quips, grinning at me. "But I could use a hand. I think I found something already."

I kneel beside him on the dock and see that he's fiddling with a hefty, waterproof case covered in seaweed.

"A case?"

"I guess. It was floating in the water. Can't get it open, though. The latch is stuck." He shakes his head. "Every fiber of my being is telling me not to open the creepy box. That's like, Movies 101."

"Well, someone's gotta open it. Why don't we open it together? That way, we're both Pandora."

"I'm crossing my fingers that whatever's in here is not all the evils of the world."

I take the knife from my shoulder sheath and use it to pry the latch open. Then, on the count of three, Diego and I lift the lid together. We both recoil immediately.

...Inside the case is another set of file folders, just like the ones I found in Rourke's office, and at the observatory. Pinned to the top of the folder is a picture of Quinn.

"...Uh...why is there a picture of Quinn in here?" Diego asks. "...Were they tracking us? I seriously doubt The Celestial runs background checks on every guest."

I don't answer immediately. I open the files. Quinn is on top, followed by Craig and Michelle. Diego reads over my shoulder.

Target Analysis

Clearance: Epsilon

Surname: Kelly

First: Quinn

Middle: Erin

D.O.B: 1996 July 20

Birthplace: Boulder, CO

Background: Spent her whole childhood in a hospital battling Rotterdam's Syndrome (rare autoimmune disease.) Costs bankrupted her parents, leading to their divorce.

Psychological Profile: Constant near-death experiences give her unabashed craving of experiences, marked by socialization and intimacy issues.

Threat Assessment: 0 (strong-willed survivor, but not a threat)

Target Analysis

Clearance: Epsilon

Surname: Hsiao

First: Kuan-yu

Middle: Craig

D.O.B: 1995 Nov 17

Birthplace: Saginaw, MI

Background: Shy nerd turned big man on campus. Unlikely to be drafted into the pros. His star is fading fast, so he hangs onto the glory days. A grueling life has left him tough enough for any encounter.

Psychological Profile: Not very bright, but intense loyalty (particularly to his QB, Sean Gayle) prevents him from being manipulated.

Threat Assessment: 3

Target Analysis

Clearance: Epsilon

Surname: Nguyen

First: Michelle

Middle: Thuy

D.O.B: 1995 Dec 31

Birthplace: Bellevue, WA

Background: Raised by a single mother, taught to work hard for what she wants, and she wants it all. Top of her class, will have her pick of med schools. Stud QB boyfriend is just the cherry on top.

Psychological Profile: As motivated and hardworking as they come. Hard to tell if she enjoys her status, or if it's all a means to an end.

Threat Assessment: 5

Quinn's profile is stamped with the sigil of a dolphin. Craig's is a pawprint that I think is supposed to be a bear. Michelle's is what appears to be a stylized peacock.

"This is insane!" Diego whispers. "What's the point of all this? And what do those weird symbols mean? They all look like animals."

"I'm not sure. But it all has to add up to something." I am quiet a moment. Then, after checking to see that there is no one around who could understand me, I whisper in Spanish, "There are more of them. I found more at the observatory, and some in Rourke's office. I've been hiding them under the mattress in my suite. ...Someone is tracking us, Diego."

"Shit! Allie, why didn't you tell me?!"

"I was scared. And distracted. And I don't want to trust anyone else with the information just yet."

"I won't say anything. ...Who have you found?"

"...You. And Sean, Jake, Estela, Raj, Zahra, and Grace."

"...Dare I ask what it said about me?"

Impulsively, I throw my arms around him. "...Nothing I didn't already know. Nothing you don't know I know. But please...don't ask me to repeat it."

He holds me back. "...Okay. Okay, Allie. I won't. ...But you'll let me read it, won't you?"

"Yeah. When we get back to The Celestial. I assume we will go back by the evening..."

"Probably." He pats my back. "...Don't go to pieces on me now, Allie. You're supposed to be the brave one, remember?"

"...You're brave, too." I pull back. "Will you find someplace safe for those? I'm gonna look around a little more."

"Can do."

I leave him to it, wandering over to Craig, who is at the far end of the dock.

"Hey, Craig, any luck?"

"Actually, yeah. Check it." He gestures me over, and points out a jet ski tethered to the dock, completely intact.

"Oh, wow! Good find!"

"Yeah...but it's almost out of gas. Nowhere near enough to get to the coast." He sighs and looks around at the smoke rising from the destroyed ships. "Guess we're still stuck here."

His words make sense, but his tone is easy. Nonchalant. ...Almost cheerful.

"Craig...you still don't want to leave, do you? Even with all the monsters and the time travel, you want to stay."

"...Yeah," he admits. "Guess I do. Maybe I like it here."

I am quiet a moment. The details of his dossier are still fresh in my mind. Of his, and Diego's...I wonder what the people tracking us would have to say about me.

"...I have nothing to go home to, either," I confess softly.

Craig freezes. "...Really...?"

"Yeah. ...Nothing I'd really miss, anyway. ...The most important person in my life is already here."

I look over at Diego. A memory comes to me unbidden...of the last time either he or I had any real family outside of each other. ...The last time either of us had someone in our lives outside of each other who we trusted so completely. I remember the moment it all changed, that winter break when he turned up on my doorstep in tears, a hastily packed suitcase in hand...

"In some ways, this place feels like a fresh start," I continue. "Maybe it's dangerous, maybe it's weird, but here I feel...important somehow, ya know?"

"...Yeah. Actually, I do."

"...Just remember you're not alone, okay?"

I lay a hand on his arm. He nods, trying to look nonchalant.

"...Yeah. I know. ...Thanks, dude."

"Comin' through!" Jake bounces past us, leaping from the pier to a splintered sailboat. He deftly maintains his balance on the slick deck.

"Careful there, Top Gun!"

He smirks at me. "I ain't never been careful in my life." He rummages through the sailboat's storage compartment, taking out maps and bits of paper. Then he gives a triumphant shout. "Ha! Come to papa! Hey, Princess! Catch!"

He tosses me something small and orange. I manage to catch it.

"Hey, a flare gun! Nice!" I consider firing it, but then think better of it. "...No point in firing it now, when we don't know if anyone's around to see it."

"That's using some sense. We oughta wait until we see a plane or a ship in the distance."

He hops back onto the pier. I look past him and see Lila on the deck of a massive yacht. The bow is mostly intact, but the ship is snapped in half, with the stern portion mostly submerged. I pass the flare gun to Jake, and cross the gangway to join her.

"Lila! Find anything over here?"

She shakes her head, frowning. Her forehead is creased with concern. "...Not yet. It's just...weird..."

"What is?"

"I feel like I recognize this yacht."

She heads to the middle of the ship, where the deck ends in twisted, splintered steel. A cracked staircase leads down to the partly submerged deck below.

"Wait, you're not going down there, are you? It's flooded..."

"I have to check something."

"I'm coming with you, then."

"Really? Well...let's go then!"

We head down into the dark compartment. Lukewarm seawater rises quickly around us, lapping at my knees, then my thighs, then my hips as we wade further in.

"This must've been a storage compartment," Lila murmurs.

I duck under a hanging cargo net and find several cracked wooden boxes that have tumbled from their shelves.

"Be careful, okay? I've got a bad feeling this ship is gonna go completely under any minute now. What are you looking for, anyway?"

"Proof. Help me with this?" She gestures to a wooden crate, and I help her lift it out of the water. Lila wipes the brine off the label. "...There it is. This vessel's name."

"...Daedalus?"

"I was right," Lila says softly. "We're on Mr. Rourke's yacht."

"What does that mean? Why would he leave it here?" Lila doesn't respond. Tears gather in her dark eyes. I put a hand on her shoulder. "Lila, I'm sure he's okay somewhere."

"Thank you, Alodia. But I'm not so sure about that."

Before I can respond, a sudden crack shakes the floor beneath my feet. Lila screams.

"The yacht! It's going under the-"

The water rushes in and closes over my head, cutting me off. The stern of the ship breaks off from the bow and slips beneath the surface. And it's taking me and Lila with it. I swim desperately for an exit, but my path is blocked by the thick ropes of the cargo net. Fast as I can manage moving through saltwater, I rip the knife at my shoulder from its sheath and saw through the ropes of the cargo net. When I've broken through, I grab Lila's hand and pull her after me as I rush for the surface.

We breach the surface and greedily gulp the air, reaching to grasp the edge of the pier as the others come running up to us.

"Holy hell!" Jake grabs my arms and pulls me onto the safety of the pier. "You guys okay?"

I nod weakly, coughing up a little bit of seawater. Diego kneels beside me, rubbing my back.

"How'd you even make it out of there?" Sean asks.

"It's was Alodia's quick thinking," Lila manages to gasp. "...I'd be dead now if it weren't for you."

"It's Quinn you should thank," I say with a weak smile. "She gave me the knife."

"I'm glad you're all right, Alodia," Sean says. "Way to keep your wits about you."

"Gotta admit, I'm impressed," Jake remarks. "I thought you were a goner for sure."

I snort, poking him. "Thanks for the vote of confidence."

There's a shout from the other side of the marina that catches our attention.

"Everybody!" Grace yells. "Come here quick!"

We pick ourselves off the ground and hurry over to the pier where Grace is standing by something tied to the dock beneath a large tarp.

"What've you got for us?"

Grace yanks away the tarp, revealing a speedboat, completely intact.

"A high-performance runabout," Iris chimes. "Visual analysis indicates a Neptune-class model 2850."

"It almost looks brand new," Grace observes. "Not sure why this one's okay when everything else is destroyed, but..."

"Don't look a gift horse in the mouth, Short Stuff," Jake chides.

"Pretty sure the Trojans would feel differently about that," Diego mutters.

"Does it have keys?" Sean asks. Grace shakes her head. Sean looks hopefully at Zahra, who raises an eyebrow.

"Are you telling me to hotwire it?"

"Noooo, I'm not telling you anything. You do exactly as you please."

"You're goddamn right." She flicks out her knife and hops into the boat. After a couple minutes of tinkering, the engine revs to life.

"Hell yeah! Nice work!" Jake gives her a hand out of the boat. "What's the range, Blue Girl Group? Can it get to the Dominican Republic?"

"That's you again, Iris," Diego says when the hologram doesn't respond.

"I see. Range is sufficient to reach the Dominican Republic on a full tank of gas."

Jake checks the gas gauge and winces. "It's got gas, but it's not completely full. A little over three quarters of a tank. She might make it. But she also might stall out in the middle of the Caribbean and we die."

"Who's 'we' in this situation?" Diego asks. "Because to fit everyone, we're gonna need a bigger boat."

"You're right," I concede. "It's way too small. A couple of us should go and bring back help. But who? It's a gamble that it would even reach safe haven."

Everyone looks around uncertainly, until Sean strips off his shirt and hops in. "I'll go. I can be back with help before you know it."

"Easy, Magellan. You'd get lost within a mile." Jake strips off his shirt and hops in beside him. "I know the Caribbean. I'll play navigator."

"We've got room for a third. Anyone else wanna come?"

"...Allie should go," Diego declares.

"...I should?"

He sighs. "Maybe I worry too much, but you've gotten clawed up and knocked around more than I'm comfortable with in the past few days. And no offense to your skills, Michelle, but I'll feel better knowing Allie's on her way to civilization and a fully-trained doctor."

"I agree with Diego," Quinn says.

"As do I," Estela chimes in. "You have seemed to take the brunt of the abuse this island is keen to heap on us."

"Whaddya say, Princess? Fancy a speedboat ride with me and Steve Rogers here?"

"Sure. I'll tag along. But for the record, Diego totally worries too much."

Diego chuckles, hugging me. "I know, I know. But you indulge me and I love you for it."

Sean and Jake each offer me a hand and help me into the boat.

"Welp," Zahra says. "It was nice knowing ya."

"Zahra!" Lila chides, and turns to us. "Here, take some extra water with you. We've got enough to spare."

"You two look after my friend here," Diego says, then smiles at me. "And Allie, you look after these two dummies."

I snort. "Can do _._ We'll be back soon. Promise."

Sean takes the throttle and guides the speed boat out into the open ocean. He increases speed a bit and the island begins to recede behind us, our friends on the shore shrinking down to pinpricks. I suddenly feel nervous, especially leaving Diego behind.

"...I hope they'll be okay until we get back," I murmur.

"They'll be fine." Jake lies down on a seat and stretches out in the sunshine. "Sit back and relax awhile, Princess. We've got about three hours of nothing but flat ocean ahead. ...I've got some sunscreen in my bag if you want it. You look like you burn easy."

I snort. "Yeah, yeah, I'm as white as a Victorian aristocrat. Pass it over."

I slip off my tank top and jeans to apply the sunscreen, spreading it over my arms, legs, belly and face.

"Need any help with that?" Jake asks.

"I could get your back for you," Sean offers quickly.

I grin as a deliciously wicked thought crosses my mind. "...Why don't you both help?" I am delighted to see them both look startled.

"...Both of us?" Sean asks.

"...At the same time?"

"Yeah." I smirk at them. "I wanna make sure I'm tooooootally covered."

The men share a weird look.

"Well...uh...I guess we could stop for a second," Sean relents, and slows the boat to an idle.

I part my hair at my neck and lie down on my stomach, still grinning wickedly. Sean and Jake line up on either side of me and begin spreading out the sunscreen. I can't help drawing in a deep breath. Jake's touch is rough, firm, and forceful, like a deep massage. Meanwhile, Sean's is soft, gentle, caressing. Under their combined touch, I feel myself melting.

"You're doing it all wrong!" Jake hisses. "You're not even getting it into the skin!"

"You're the one missing spots!" Sean snaps back.

"I think you're both doing great," I mumble appreciatively.

"Does that feel all right?" Sean asks, rubbing a spot on my shoulder.

"You have no idea..."

Jake works a spot on my lower back. "How's that?"

"Absolutely perfect."

Way too soon for my liking, they finish up, and Sean revs up the engine again. Jake's hand lingers on my back a moment longer. I realize his fingers are just touching the edge of the bandage on my ribs.

"...I just changed it before we left. Should be good for at least three hours."

"How do they look underneath? They still hurt?"

"Yeah, a little. But they aren't bleeding, and they don't look infected."

"How about that bite Estela mentioned?"

I sit up and show him the site, where all that remains is a small puncture wound. "No swelling, see? And I haven't had a fever or anything that would indicate any reaction to the antivenom."

After a moment, he nods.

"...I think Petey was right to send you along with us, at any rate. You're probably fine, but it'll also be a lot safer if you're checked out by professionals as soon as possible."

I pull my clothes back on. "I'm sure you're right. But, since all that poking and prodding is about three hours away..." I stretch out on the deck, yawning. "I'm gonna get comfy."

He chuckles. "Atta girl."

I close my eyes, savoring the warmth of the sunlight on my face and the smell of saltwater. Suddenly, I feel a chill pass over me. The view from behind my eyelids, red a moment ago from the sunlight shining through the blood vessels, suddenly turns dark. I open my eyes and find the sun has slipped behind a cloud. ...A huge, bruise-colored cloud, pregnant with rain. And there are more tumbling in fast behind it.

"Storm's rolling in fast," Jake observes, his voice low and grim. "Surf's kicking up quick."

Almost to punctuate his words, a wave slams into the side of the boat, causing it to lurch sharply. I grip the guardrails. Chilly winds whip past me, tugging my hair away from my face and spraying me with raindrops.

"See that?" Sean says loudly above the noise of the wind. He is pointing towards the sky. In the clouds overhead, I can make out the sparkle of orange lightning.

"I see it," Jake says. "Just like what we saw from the plane."

"Guys!" I shriek. "Look out!"

Dead ahead of us, a massive crater has opened up in the ocean. Deep, dark water swirls at unbelieveable speeds.

"Whirlpool!" Jake cries.

"There's something coming out of it!" I cry.

All we can do is watch in horror as a massive creature breaches the surface and rises at least ten stories above us. It is serpentine, almost draconic. It towers over our little boat, the orange lightning reflecting off its blue-scaled body. The tops of leathery blue wings rest just above the water's surface. It has no eyes that I can see, only two curling horns where its eyes ought to be. But its open mouth reveals rows upon rows of sword-like teeth. Lightning crackles between the jagged dentata, leaping from tooth to tooth like they were clouds.

"...Sweet mother of God," Sean whispers.

The creature lets out a howl that echoes across the marina. My heart wedges in my throat. We haven't gotten at all far from La Huerta. And our friends are still standing on the shore.


	12. The Face of the Enemy

Rain pelts our faces as we stare up at the massive creature before us. We struggle to keep our footing on the slick deck as wind and sea batter the vessel. The monster lets out an ear-piercing howl and archs its glistening body towards us, opening its maw to engulf us.

"Swerve!" Jake shouts. "Swerve! SWERVE!"

Sean jerks hard on the wheel as the creature suddenly picks up speed, diving down at us. I scream, gripping the rail as the boat swerves out of the path of the creature's plunge. I can hear it hiss as it goes past, feel the electricity between its teeth sizzle in my blood and raise every hair on my body. As it smashes into the water, a huge wave smashes into the side of the boat, soaking us clean through. I barely manage to keep my grip.

"We all good?" Sean calls.

"For now!" Jake answers.

A flash of lightning illuminates the beast as it streaks through the water, twisting around us. I take in the magnitude of its massive scaled body below the surface.

"We have to run!" I scream. "Get back to the island!"

"You really think we can outrun this thing?!" Sean shrieks.

"The way that thing swims?" Jake yells. "No way in hell! Besides, I never back down from a good fight! And killing that thing's the only way to get off this island!"

"Jake's right!" Sean says. "And if we don't stop that thing now, it'll come for our friends next! We gotta fight it! For them!"

They both look at me, silently asking my permission. But Sean has spoken the magic words.

"You're right. There's no running. Either that thing goes down, or we do."

The creature rises again, and begins arching towards us in another attack. Sean swerves at the last moment, barely dodging it. The boat shakes and rattles, and another massive wave soaks us.

"Okay, so what are we supposed to fight it with? Don't suppose anybody's got a giant fish hook!"

"I've got this flare gun," Jake says. "But it won't make a dent against Nessie over here."

"I'll check in the back and see if I can find something!" I say. "Just hold that thing off!"

I grab the knife belt, which has somehow avoided being flung overboard, and strap it on as I go. While Sean concentrates on evading the creature's jaws, I rummage through the small storage space at the back of the boat. There's some fishing tackle, a gas can...and...

"Uh...guys...?"

I turn around and hold out my find: a bundle of wires, crammed into a yellow plastic casing and messily wrapped with duct tape.

"...Is that what I think it is?"

"If you think it's a half-kilo of Semtex," Jake says, "then yeah."

"What?!" I yelp.

"You're holding a bomb, Princess."

"...The boats at the marina were all blown up..."

"Hang on!"

Jake wraps one arm tightly around my waist and pushes us both against the rails, clinging to them as the creature dives again. I hug the bomb to my chest, even as it occurs to me that I shouldn't do that.

"...That bomb must have had a bad detonator," Jake continues when the next wave has settled. "Failed to go off."

I look over the rails and see the creature moving beneath the raging water, orange flickers of lightning pulsing around it. I suck in my breath sharply.

"Guys...I have an idea."

"Lay it on us!" Sean says, preparing to swerve again.

"Sean, if we got up close to it...real close...could you put those football skills to use and throw the explosive into the monster's mouth?"

"That's one hell of a long throw at a moving target, but...yeah. I can do it."

"And if it was in...Jake, could you detonate it with a shot from the flare gun?"

"I was the best damn shot in my deployment, in or out of the cockpit. If anyone can do it, it's me."

"Alodia, this has to be the single most insane plan I have heard in my entire life." A hundred feet away, the creature rears up, gathering strength for another attack. Sean sets his jaw. "Let's do it. Alodia, take the helm. Keep the boat steady. Get us up real close. And when I give the word, swerve."

"Aye-aye, captain!" I grab the steering wheel, passing the bomb to Sean. Jake readies the flare gun. "...Here we go..."

I aim the boat straight at the creature and gun it. I tighten my grip. Every nerve is on edge. Every instinct screams at me to get out of the way, but I hold steady.

"Keep 'er steady," Sean murmurs at me.

The creature roars, and I bite back a terrified whimper. I've got to focus. This is my part in the battle. The monster sucks in air, lightning pulsing around it. The boat races closer, streaking like a missile towards its target. I grit my teeth.

"You got this, Princess. You got this."

"I'm trying..."

The creature opens its maw wide, electricity crackling between its teeth.

"Now!" Sean yells.

I pull down hard on the wheel, jerking the boat to the right, swerving out of the monster's path. It's gaping maw streaks towards the spot where we were.

"Sean! Go!"

Sean winds up and flings the plastic explosive in a perfect arc. It sails through the storm, and sticks against the monster's teeth.

"Jake! Do it! Shoot!"

Through the raging storm and surging waves, as the monster roars and swivels towards us, Jake stands calm as a gentle breeze. He levels the flare gun, taking aim.

"...Don't forget to floss, asshole," he growls, and squeezes the trigger. The flare streaks towards the monster, towards its teeth, towards the explosive... "Everyone get down!"

I feel myself pulled to the deck, pressed between Sean and Jake as a deafening explosion rips through the air. I feel the air get briefly hotter. The creature's piercing shriek of pain makes my blood run cold. Then, after a moment, the two men stir around me, and we climb unsteadily to our feet.

"...Everyone okay?" Sean asks.

I look out at the place where the monster had been. There is blood in the water. I can see the creature's tail as it retreats.

"...We did it..." I whisper. Then, I turn to the men, grinning. "We did it!"

"We...we did..."

"...That actually worked..."

We look at each other for a long moment, then burst into peals of wild, exhausted, exhilarated laughter, hugging and patting each other on the back. Sean grabs Jake in a headlock, ruffling his hair.

"Damn, flyboy! That was some good shooting!"

Jake shoves him off and punches him lightly in the arm. "Couldn't have done it without that power arm, Q.B." He lunges at me, picking me up and twirling me around. "Princess, you were brilliant, of course!"

I wrap my arms around his neck. "Can we take a moment to appreciate the fact that we just blasted the hell out of a goddamn sea monster?!"

I hear wild yelling from across the marina. In the course of the battle, we've lost a bit of distance, floated back towards the island, but right now, I'm too thrilled to care. Back on shore, our friends are cheering, waving and screaming at the tops of their voices.

"Dudes!" Raj yells. "Duuuuuuuuuuuudes!"

"Sea monster hunters for the win!" Diego shouts. "Badass!"

Just then, the water under the boat starts to rumble. I look over the side and see a light forming under the hull, a strange, unearthly glow.

"...Guys...?"

"What's happening...?"

"I don't kn-"

The light surges towards us in a blinding pillar of white. It shoots up through the water and suddenly the boat is gone from under my feet. I am airborne, with the sky below me and the sea above, with the sea coming down fast to meet me. I hear myself scream. ...Then I crash into the water, the surface stinging my skin like hornets.

The chilly water rushes around me, pushing and pulling, batting me around like I am nothing more than a twig. I fight against the rip current, clawing desperately at the water, but I can't seem to shake it. The shore...where is the shore...? I have to swim parallel to the shore...I have to get to the surface and tread water. But something in this water doesn't want me to reach the surface. I'm being consumed by a sentient sea that isn't keen to let me go.

 _What the sea will take, the sea must have._ Ridiculously, a line from a movie I saw when I was no more than eight years old echoes in my mind. _To fight the cold sea,_ it said, _is only to prolong your suffering._

In the moments before death, the heart reveals itself with unflinching candor. My strength and will are fading. I am too exhausted to think now, only to feel. There are two figures sinking near me. The two men who were on the boat with me. I gather the last of my strength and swim towards Jake, my arms outstretched. He reaches for me, grabs me, pulls me into his arms. I close the distance between us, holding him with the last of my strength, touching my mouth to his. This is my last conscious moment. Holding Jake. Being held by Jake. Kissing Jake, and feeling him kiss me back. Moments flash through my mind, moments when he has been kind. When he has protected me. Made me smile or laugh. Moments when he has offered me a glimpse of what is behind his walls. For this moment, I feel warm again.

Then the darkness takes me.

 _Kffff...kffff..._

Distantly, I hear someone coughing. There is something solid, rough, and warm underneath me. Saltwater sprays my face, carried on a balmy, fragrant breeze. I feel my eyelids flutter. Then, as the tightness in my chest registers, I realize that I am the one coughing. I sit up sharply, my body spasming violently, barely managing to roll onto my hands and knees as I choke up seawater. When my lungs are clear, I collapse on the sand again, gasping and trembling. As the spasms settle, I carefully roll onto my back, taking in my surroundings.

I am on a quiet, unfamiliar beach. I am soaking wet, with seaweed tangled around one leg. My clothes, skin, and hair are covered with sand. ...But I am alive. It dazes me to realize it, but I am alive.

"Alodia!... _Alodia!_ "

I turn my head to see Jake and Sean running down the beach towards me. I sit up carefully as Jake reaches my side first, sliding to his knees beside me. He takes hold of my shoulders, turning me carefully towards him. His eyes meet mine.

"You okay?" he asks, worry and relief fighting for control of his voice.

"I'm fine...how about you guys?"

"We're both okay," Sean confirms.

I exhale and rub at my face, trying to brush off some of the sand. Jake offers me an arm as I get carefully to my feet. I look out over the water, crystal blue and shimmering beneath a clear sky. There is no sign of the monster.

"...What the hell happened?"

"Last thing I remember is getting pulled underwater," Sean says.

"Me too," Jake adds. "But then...nothing."

"...And then we just woke up here," I conclude.

"Doesn't make any damn sense," Jake mutters. "Not that I'm complaining, but reason suggests the three of us should be dead about now."

"...I think it's fate," I say to my own surprise. I look back at the two men. "I mean, no way this was just us getting lucky, right? This has to _mean_ something. I don't care how weird this island is, you don't just go from being dragged into the ocean to waking up unharmed on a beach."

"Not without something looking out for you," Sean agrees.

"Or someone," Jake adds.

"...So...what now?" Sean asks. "Either of you know where we are?"

Jake shades his eyes and squints at the sun. "...West side of the island, I think. Hard to get more specific than that. Trees are too thick."

"We should fan out and look around. See if we can find our way back."

We split up, but we make sure to stay in sight of each other. I wander down the beach, letting the waves roll over my bare feet. The rushing of the breeze in my ears mingles with the whisper of the breaking waves. I can almost imagine I hear them making words.

 _Koshtak...zarr...ballo... Koshtak...zarr...ballo..._

I freeze. ...That wasn't my imagination. That was a man's voice, whispering. I look for Sean and Jake, but they're both too far away for it to have been them. Then something catches my eye, something colorful jutting out of the sand. A large multicolored conch shell. I approach it carefully, bending to fish it out of the sand. For a moment, I stare at it. ...It couldn't be...right? I press the shell to my ear.

" _Koshtak...zar...ballo,"_ a man whispers in my ear. _"Koshtak...zar...ballo..."_

"What the hell?" I mutter.

"Whatcha got there?" I look behind me to see that Jake has wandered over with Sean.

"This seashell. ...This is gonna sound crazy, but I swear, it sounds like it's saying the weirdest thing..."

I hold the shell out to Jake. ...Except now it's my own voice coming out of it.

" _What the hell...what the hell..."_ the shell-voice murmurs.

"Wait...that's not what it was saying before."

Jake eyes the shell suspiciously. "...Please tell me you're some kinda ventriloquist."

 _"You're some kinda ventriloquist...you're some kinda ventriloquist..."_

"That's incredible..." Sean breathes. "Hang onto that thing, Alodia. It might come in handy."

"Will do. If nothing else, Raj will get a kick out of it."

"I think I've got my bearings," Jake says. "The resort should just be a short hike this way. Let's get moving."

Sean and I follow Jake, and the three of us trek along the shore in silence for a little while. Finally, I break it.

"So...what was that thing in the ocean, anyway?"

"Besides a huge-ass sea monster?" Jake says wryly.

"I gotta say, I was all about dinosaurs as a kid, but I don't think I ever saw anything that looked like that."

"I'm pretty sure I've never heard of a Crabbus Giantus either," Jake retorts. "You want my theory? I think those things were man-made. Experiments or biological weapons."

Sean laughs. "Come on, man, that's a little tin-foil even for you. I mean why would R-" He stops talking as Jake raises his fist sharply in the air. "...What?"

"Listen," Jake whispers. "In the trees. Someone's coming."

I tip my head and listen. ...And I hear it. The sound of approaching footsteps. Reading Jake's body language, I freeze, keeping my mouth shut. He nods approvingly. The two of us crouch down low beside a large rock. Sean joins us. ...It's not nearly enough to hide all three of us, but it does make me feel slightly less exposed.

"Am I missing something?" he whispers. "Shouldn't we let our friends know we're here?"

"You're assuming those are our friends," Jake whispers back.

"Aren't you?"

"...I never assume."

The trees rustle. Jake grabs my hand as the ferns part. There are tall figures emerging from the jungle. I grip the hand in mine harder.

"...Oh, my God..."

There are two of them, a man and a woman, dressed in scant clothing made of leaves. They are shaped like humans, but their skin gleams in impossible shades and the tips of their ears are pointed like Tolkien elves. The woman has skin the color of emeralds, while the man is pale blue. Their skin is marked with tattooed vines twining around their legs and arms. Strange, ornate masks hide their faces. On the man's is an owl. The woman wears one that looks like a skull. They hold weapons that look like they are made out of amber. The man holds a long sword. The woman carries a dagger in each hand.

"...Who...who are..." Sean whispers.

"...Should we run...?"

"Too late for that," Jake mutters. "Face it, we're not exactly hidden."

"So what do we do?"

"Hope they're friendly. Fight like hell if they're not." He squeezes my hand.

The woman turns back towards the jungle.

"Varyyn!" she calls. "Zhartell mishtok. En zallar."

Another blue-skinned man emerges, taller and more muscular than the others. My breath catches in my thoat. I grip Jake's arm.

...He wears a lion mask. He's the man I saw in that vision in the ballroom.

"Khell," he murmurs.

"...How...how can this..."

The man in the owl mask strides over to where we're huddled behind the rock, pointing his sword at us.

"Marr nost, koh?" he growls. "Koh?"

"Khell," the tall one answers. He shoves past the other and marches over to us. I feel a strange...tingling in my head. Like an itch in my brain. "Dell ast partico. Dell...ast partico."

I draw in a sharp breath as an image flashes through my mind. An open palm...a sheathed sword...a knee in the sand...

"Dell ast partico!" he barks.

"Look, Legolas, we don't speak your damn language!" Jake snaps.

"Wait..." I say. "...I...think he wants us to surrender."

"...You serious?"

"Trust me." I squeeze Jake's hand one more time, then let go. With my hands raised, I step out from behind the rock. I take a few careful steps towards the leader. Then, I slowly kneel. I struggle to repeat the leader's words. "Dell...ast...partico..."

The masked man's pose relaxes slightly, and he nods. "...Dell ast partico."

"...Someday, you're gonna have to tell me how you knew to do that," Jake says.

Sean smiles. "Never doubt Alodia."

They both step out and surrender, kneeling on either side of me. The other two masked people join their leader. The woman raises her daggers and scrapes them together.

"Arkhala tell mishrap, nostaron..."

"Mishrap..." the leader murmurs.

Another image flashes in my mind. ...I see my own body, lying wide-eyed on the sand, my throat slit. I cry out.

"Alodia!" Sean grips my shoulder. "What's wrong?"

"...I...I think they...they want to..."

The leader steps towards me, cocking his head curiously. "...Anlashokk."

That strange feeling in my brain grows stronger, crossing the line from tingling into pain...and pleasure at the same time. There's something probing deep inside my head. It's...as if the lion-masked man is there...inside my mind. And he's trying to break through. I feel myself trembling, hear my breathing get shallow. Jake twines his fingers in mine.

"...Say the word, Alodia," he murmurs.

The leader steps towards me, his hand outstretched. The pain in my head grows, and I can't hold back a whimper. But...if I just give into it...I think...he and I could understand each other...

He approaches me carefully, as if I were a stray dog or a skittish horse. I stretch out my arms, gently pushing Jake and Sean back.

"It's okay...It's going to be okay. Just stay where you are."

I close my eyes and draw in my breath as the man's hand touches my forehead. Searing pain shoots through my entire body, starting at the spot where he touches. It's hot and cold at once, sizzling and electric. I seize up violently, then pitch forward towards the sand.

"Alodia!" Jake catches me as I collapse. "What did he do to you?! I'll kill him if he hu-"

"No! ...Wait...wait...I'm okay..."

Visions flash through my mind, as clear as anything I've seen yet. ...A city built into trees, held together by vines...a withered crone, her face hidden behind a veil...a figure in a battered red spacesuit, walking across a blackened beach...

The leader steps back and speaks again. But this time, when he speaks, he speaks with two voices. One with his mouth, and one inside my head. With his mouth, he says, _Anlashokk_. In my mind, I hear...

"Mind-talker."

"...That's...that's me...?" I push myself carefully out of Jake's arms.

"This should be impossible."

"Yeah, well...nothing about this ought to be possible."

"Sorry," Jake murmurs. "Did I miss something? Do you understand these guys?"

"...I can't explain. It's like...he's inside my head..."

"...That doesn't sound good," Sean mutters.

The masked woman whispers something. The leader shakes his head. He gestures to Sean. With his mouth, he says, _Aquila._ "The Eagle," is what I hear.

Sean blinks. "...Say what now?"

The leader ignores him, looking at Jake. _Lupus._ "The Wolf."

"Go lupus yourself, Papa Smurf," Jake growls.

He looks at me now. "...But who are you?"

"...I'm Alodia..."

He shakes his head. "No. Not what I meant."

The woman barks something angrily, thrusting her dagger in my direction. Again, I see my own dead body, this time with the hilt of a dagger sprouting from my chest.

"Listen...whoever you are...we don't mean you any harm..."

"All men of the Hydra bring harm," the leader scoffs.

"We're not...we're not with the Hydra...whatever that is..."

"You following this, Q.B.?" Jake murmurs. "Because I'm lost."

"I don't know, but I trust Alodia."

"Yeah, fair enough. If anyone can talk our way out of this, it's her."

"Look," I say, "Whatever you want...whatever I can do to convince you...just tell me..."

The leader studies me for a moment. "...You must come with me."

"M...me...?"

"All of you."

I swallow hard, knowing my fear is plain on my face, but unable to do anything about it.

"What did he say," Sean asks worriedly.

"He wants us to come with him. All of us."

"No way in hell," Jake says flatly.

"I don't know if we have a choice, Jake," Sean says grimly. "Something tells me that woman is good with those knives."

The woman notices Sean's gaze on her. "Lash camaa!" she growls.

"Yes," the leader says. "You must come with us, or you die here."

"Why? Why is it so important that we come with you?"

He steps back, pressing two fingers to his temple. My world flashes white. And suddenly, I am suspended in space, looking down at the earth, a beautiful marble of mottled green, brown, blue, and white. I hear the leader's voice echo across the void.

"If you do not come..."

...Suddenly, it's burning. The earth is burning. The flames explode from one place and spread over the globe, staining it hellish shades of orange and red. Then everything flashes white again. I jerk out of the vision with a feeble cry.

"What is it, Alodia?" Sean asks. "What did you see."

"I...it was...I mean..." I swallow. "I think we should go with him. If we don't...I think something really bad will happen."

"How bad?"

"Like...apocalypse bad.

The men exchange a glance. Then Jake exhales slowly.

"Okay. It still seems crazy to me, but I'll follow your lead."

"Same," Sean agrees.

The dagger woman folds her arms and turns away with an angry huff. The leader stretches out a hand to me. I reach out to take it.

" _Get away from them!_ "

I look up to see Craig charging down the beach from the jungle, clutching a large rock.

"No!" I scream. "Craig, wait!"

The rock has akready left his fingertips. It flies at the leader with the power and precision of a football player's throw, and strikes the mask from his face. The leader turns a handsome, alien face towards me, golden eyes flashing with fury. The dagger woman lets out an engraged battle cry and flings one of her daggers at Craig. It flies through the air with fearsome speed, and slices open the side of his arm. He cries out in pain, clutching the wound.

"Craig!"

Seeing his friend hurt, Sean dives forward, grabbing the woman by the waist and tackling her down into the sand. Her other dagger tumbles out of her hand as she hits. The man in the owl mask swivels to help her, but now Jake moves. In one fluid motion, he rolls across the beach, grabs a driftwood log, and smashes it across the owl-masked man's head.

"Traitor!" the leader snarls at me.

"No!" I cry frantically. "Listen, it's not like that!"

But Jake grabs my arm, pulling me towards the jungle. "Come on, Alodia! Run!"

Sean springs up and runs after us. Behind him, the masked woman scrambles to her feet.

"Go go go!" Sean yells.

We rush into the trees, joined by Craig, clutching his bloody arm. Raj and Michelle are waiting for us.

"Come on!" Michelle shrieks. "Run!"

"Before they catch up!"

We race through the jungle, sprinting towards the resort, ducking branches and leaping over roots. Behind us, I can hear the strange trio shouting, can hear their footsteps trailing ours.

"Who the hell were those people?!" Craig cries.

"Ask Alodia!" Jake snaps. "She's the one who mind-melded with them!"

"She what in the who?!" Raj yelps.

"Shut up and keep running!" Michelle snarls.

We slam through the thick brush, slapping aside the foliage and emerge outside The Celestial.

"Allie!" I look up and see Diego and the others just inside the iron gate into the courtyard. Murphy is at his feet, yipping frantically.

"The gate!" Sean screams. "Open the gate! Now!"

Estela and Lila dive forward, pulling the gate open. We rush past the gate, and I throw myself at Diego, who crushes me in an embrace.

"Close it!" I hear Jake shout. "Close it now!"

"Oh, God, Allie!" Diego whispers, trembling. "Oh, God, you're alive..."

As the sound of the gate slamming shut and locking registers, I realize that the last Diego saw me, I was being thrown off the speedboat, disappearing under the stormy waves. I clutch him tightly. Sean and Jake collapse on the steps.

"Are we good?" Raj asks. "Are we safe?"

"Safe from what?!" Quinn asks. "What happened out there?! We thought you three were dead!"

I turn back to look out through the bars. In the thick jungle, I can just barely make out a man's shape, glowering at me with cold fire in his eyes. In my head, I can hear his voice.

 _You cannot hide. You cannot run. We will take you. We must._

But when I blink, he's gone. I stand with the others outside the hotel, panting, gasping, and staring out into the jungle.

"Would someone please tell me what's going on here?!" Grace cries.

"The enemy is out there," Jake says grimly.

I nod. "...And they're coming for us."


	13. The Eleventh Winner

Twenty stories up, our group surveys the jungle from The Celestial's rooftop garden. Everything is quiet. Sean scans the horizon through a pair of binoculars. Iris hovers nearby.

"Any sign of them?" I ask.

"I think we're safe," he answers tentatively.

"For now," Jake says grimly. "Alodia heard what they said. They're coming for us."

"Then why are they leaving us alone now?" Grace asks weakly.

"The sun is going down," Estela observes. "They could be waiting 'til dawn."

Michelle looks up from where she is wrapping up the cut on Craig's arm. "I'm sorry, but who exactly were they? _What_ were they?"

I close my eyes, the images of the strange, muscular figures looming in my memory. The leader's golden eyes burn into my soul. His words echo deep in my mind.

 _You cannot hide. You cannot run. We will take you. We must._

"They seemed pretty human to me," Quinn says uncertainly.

"And pretty stylish," Diego adds. "What were they doing wearing masquerade masks?"

"...I think they're the island's inhabitants," I murmur.

Zahra rolls her eys. "Oh my gosh, do you really think so? The people inhabiting the island are the inhabitants? Wow, you're real smart."

"But Alodia's right," Lila says. "One thing's clear. They must have been here a long time. I just don't know how nobody noticed them before."

"Just because nobody told you about them, Lila, doesn't mean they weren't noticed," Michelle murmurs.

"What we do know is that they've been watching us for a long time," Jake says. "They seemed to know me. To know Sean."

"Well, whoever these...Watchers are," Craig says, "they're coming for us. And we need to be ready."

"Craig's right," Sean says. "We've gotta barricade ourselves in. Block the entrances. Gather weapons, anything we can use to protect ourselves."

"And then what?" Michelle asks. "We just established that we've got no help coming, and a giant sea monster won't let us leave!"

"Current analysis does project a 0.4% chance of survival," Iris says.

"We can't hold these Watchers off forever," Grace says softly. "So what's the point?"

I shake my head. "Doesn't matter. I'm not giving up. I'm not lying down. I've never quit on something in my life, and I'm not about to start."

"I cannot say your rationale is logically sound," Iris declares. "Weighted calculations suggest the best option is to 'Capitulate and Welcome Death.'"

"Who _programmed_ this thing?!" Zahra asks incredulously.

"I say hell no," Michelle declares. "I'm with Alodia. And we're not going down without a fight either."

"Um...literally all of that sounds scary to me," Grace says.

"Stay focused, everybody," Sean says. "Let's split up and get to work. We can't be caught unprepared."

As Sean leads everyone towards the elevator, Murphy nuzzles at my ankles, whining. I pick him up and nuzzle him back.

"Yeah...I'm scared too, fella."

I look over at Diego. He's chewing his lower lip, not moving.

"Hey. ...You okay? What's wrong?"

"...Besides everything?"

I grin mirthlessly. "Yeah, besides that."

"It's just...sure, I get the plan. We're sealing ourselves in...But who are we sealing ourselves in _with?"_

"What do you mean?"

"Nothing here is adding up. And remember what we talked about when we got here? How there are eleven students on this trip when there were supposed to be ten?" He swallows. "One of us...isn't supposed to be here."

"...Diego...all of us are supposed to be here."

"...What?"

"I'm just saying, I think this place is our destiny. All of us, whether we won some contest or not. This is the adventure we always talked about, Diego. And nobody ever said adventure would be safe."

He smiles wryly. "Maybe you're right..."

Abruptly, he pulls me into a tight embrace. I hug him back.

"...Did I scare you?" I whisper.

"Of course you did, dummy. I thought you'd drowned."

"...Sorry."

"...You've been scaring me a lot lately. In four days, you've been clawed by a sabertooth tiger, almost blown up, attacked by a sea monster, nearly drowned twice...have I missed anything?"

"I almost fell to my death twice, and I was bitten by a snake on the way to the observatory."

"...Goddammit, Allie."

I can't help chuckling a little. "I'm okay, Diego. I really am."

"You've been lucky, Allie. ...If this is our great adventure, I'd like it to involve a bit less of you getting hurt."

"I'll be more careful. Promise. Come on now. Let's do this."

"One...two... _three!_ " On Diego's count, I set my jaw and lift one end of a massive sofa in the lobby. He strains at the other end, and we manage to get it off the ground. "Okay, let's go a little to the left!"

"My left or your left?" I grunt.

"Just go towards the furniture pile, silly!"

We waddle the sofa over to the furniture barricade in front of the entrance. We manage to get it into the pile, and pause a moment to catch our breath. I wipe a heavy sweat from my brow. Craig walks by with a massive table tucked casually under one arm. He plops it on top of the pile.

"You guys good?"

"...Fine. ...How's your arm?"

He flexes it. "Eh. Sore, but I'm good. ...You doin' okay?"

"Nothing keeps me down for long."

"Michelle," Iris chimes. "Your lifting technique is suboptimal. Avoid muscle strain by using your-"

"Are you just gonna float there doing nothing and talking crap?" Michelle snaps. "Or are you gonna help with something?"

"I apologize. I lack a corporeal form to assist with manual labor. I also must advise, your efforts to barricade the building will prove fruitless unless you also blockade the subterranean tunnel."

Quinn looks up sharply. "Wait, what did she say?"

Iris pauses a moment. "Accessing log..." She blinks. "I am not quite sure what I am referring to. I appear to have accessed a partially reconstructed memory file. I recall that a hidden tunnel exists, leading into the main resort tower."

Quinn looks at me. "Alodia, if the Watchers find it, there'll be no stopping them."

I swallow. "Iris, do you know where the entrance is?"

"Scanning...no blueprints found. Cross-referencing...Matches four files containing term: wine cellar."

"It's in the wine cellar? Where is that?"

"The stairs down into it are in the restaurant, I think," Quinn says. "I'll head over there and see if I can find this secret tunnel. ...Do...do you want to come with me? I'm not sure I could find it on my own."

I look back at Diego and the others. "Think you guys will be okay here?"

"Go on," Diego says. "We're sitting ducks if they get through that secret tunnel. We'll take care of the barricades."

I follow Quinn to the restaurant kitchen. She leads me between the counters to a corner, where I realize there's a trap door.

"Help me lift it." I kneel to help her. Together, we lift the door and drop it back, revealing a spiral staircase leading down into darkness. "...Think it's safe down there?"

I smile at her. "What do you say we find out?"

"By all means. After you."

I start down the steps, holding a hand out to Quinn behind me. She takes my hand to steady herself, and we both ease our way down the staircase. Immediately, I am hit with the aroma with cork, grapes, and the earthy smell of old-fashioned wooden barrels. I inhale deeply, suddenly feeling peaceful. As my eyes adjust, I realize that the room ahead of us is dimly lit with small lamps that illuminate row after row of gleaming, dark wine bottles. Quinn walks around, trailing her fingers over the bottles, studying the labels.

"This collection is absurd! Look at this, Alodia, they've got 1954, 1908..." She lets out a little squeak. "And 1873!"

I pause by a small rinse basin. Two wine glasses stand side by side on a pair of napkins. They each have a small puddle of cabernet left in the bottom.

"...I wonder if there were people down here for a tasting when...when _it_ happened. Whatever it was." Quinn doesn't answer. I look over at her. The dim light reflects off a film of tears in her eyes. I put a hand on her shoulder. "Hey...you okay?"

"...What do you think is going to happen, Alodia? To us, I mean."

"...It's up to us, Quinn. Our destiny is always a matter of choice. What we do from now on will decide what happens. The choice will always be ours."

"I'm not so sure, Alodia. Sometimes...sometimes things are just out of your hands. And as much as you wish you could control everything, you can't." She offers me a watery smile. "But I really admire that you're the kind of person who wants to have your fate in your hands. I just wish it were possible."

"...It is possible. ...There have been plenty of things in life that I couldn't control. ...But I can control how I react, and I can control my own actions..."

She puts a hand on my arm. "Let's find that secret tunnel. We can't block it off if we don't know where the entrance is."

I take her hand, and we wander together through the semi-darkness. I begin to feel as if I'm in a modern pharaoh's tomb, surrounded by immeasurable craft and wealth. Every so often, Quinn stops by a bottle and examines a label. She gasps at one in particular.

"Oh, wow! Domaine de Marceau 1865! I've heard of this. It's supposed to be absolutely amazing."

"You recognize the vintage? You must be quite the connoisseur."

"Well, not really. It's more that..." She trails off. "...No. It's silly."

"Tell me."

"You're gonna laugh, but...I like wine because it makes me feel sophisticated. Like I've lived a full life. When you can dive into all the minutiae of something like wine, it's because you don't really have anything serious to worry about. And somehow, the thought of that is so... _peaceful_ to me."

"...That's all anybody really wants, isn't it? To be at peace. ...This may be the great adventure of our lives, but it won't be worth anything if we can't be safe and peaceful at the end of it..."

"I know people like to say that the tough times are what strengthen character...but maybe I don't want to be strong anymore. I'm...tired of being strong." She glides gracefully up to a wall of rough stone, running her fingers along the crevices. "...This separation here... Do you think this could be the door to the tunnel?"

"Where?" I come over to see what she's looking at. She takes my hand and gently places my fingers against the smooth groove.

"Here."

She turns toward me in the dark, our faces close. I stare at her for a long moment. The light behind her blooms in her copper hair. It casts shadows in the hollows of her pale face that suddenly make her look very tired. Very fragile. Abruptly, I pull her into a hug. She squeaks in surprise.

"What's this?"

"The world has gone completely crazy," I murmur into her hair. "But when I think about going back to before all this, back where it was all safe and normal...I'd rather have endured all this, just so I'd be able to meet you. Whenever I'm with you, I have a good time. Even this has been fun, searching for a hidden tunnel with...whatever those things are preparing to attack..."

She rubs my back, chuckling a little. "I was just thinking the same thing." I feel her shift in my arms. "...Hey...do you see that?"

I pull back. "What?"

"On the floor." She kneels down and picks up a cocktail napkin from under the table. "There's writing on the back of this napkin!"

She hands it to me, and I read it aloud. "A equals B plus C minus D."

"A math formula? ...Maybe it's a clue to finding the tunnel's entrance. Like the password hint at the shelter."

"If that's the case, then it's becoming more and more likely that someone _wants_ us to figure this place out. But so far, it's our best bet." I study the formula. "So...it's alegrbra. The letters stand for numbers. Four of them. Given that we're in a wine cellar, I'm guessing it's a vintage year."

"Okay, so we're looking for a vintage year with numbers that would fit the formula. What was it again?"

I show her the napkin. She studies it for a moment, then looks over the bottles carefully, reading each vintage label and pausing a moment to do the math in her head.

"I've got it," she says after a moment. "1908."

"Okay...1 equals 9 plus 0 minus 8...You're right! It fits!"

I try to pick up the 1908 bottle, but I can't. It's fake.

"Alodia, it's a lever! Pull it!"

I grasp the bottle by the neck and push it up. Behind me comes the sound of gears cranking. I whip around to see one wall of wine racks swinging out on a hinge.

"The hidden tunnel!"

Quinn stares into the darkness behind the wall. "So this is where people could sneak into the resort. Why would they even need such a thing?"

"I've been asking 'why' pretty much nonstop since we landed. Like, why 1908?"

"I bet these numbers were important to Rourke somehow. We should close this up and make sure nobody can get in through here."

We close the door to the tunnel and barricade it up with wine barrels. When we test the hidden lever again, the door creaks and groans, but it can't shift the barricade.

"Mission accomplished," I sigh, relieved. "Try getting through _that_."

Quinn throws her arms around me. "Thanks for coming with me, Alodia. I couldn't have done it alone."

I hold her back. "I wouldn't have let you."

Back upstairs, I pass Grace and Aleister in the hall, arms full with various trinkets.

"Hey. Where are you guys headed?"

"Ballroom," Grace replies. "Come on."

I follow them to the ballroom, where Raj, Michelle, and Lila are waiting next to a table piled high with assorted junk.

"What's all this?"

"Isn't it self-evident? We're setting traps."

"Like _Home Alone!_ " Raj says cheerfully. Then he frowns. "Dude, that movie was super violent if you think about it."

"I've already scattered broken glass along a number of hallways," Lila says. "We'll hear the crunch if any intruders sneak in."

"And, um, what are you doing now?" Grace eyes the thick bundle of wires that Lila is stripping in her lap.

"Oh, this? I ripped them out of the wall. We can flood the entrance with a very thin layer of water and leave the exposed wiring in the puddle. That way, we just have to flip on the switch and instantly electrocute any intruders! Easy peasy!"

I stare at her for a moment. "You're, uh, pretty good at setting traps, Lila."

"How did you learn to do all this?" Michelle asks.

"Oh, you know. Girl Scouts."

"...Pretty sure they don't teach that in Girl Scouts," Raj mutters.

"Never mind that," Aleister says dismissively. "We've got more materials here. What do we do with them? For instance, this can of oil-based paint. Very slick. And I shouldn't have to say this, but given the present company, I fear I must: please don't get it in your eyes. In fact, I suggest we-"

"Dump it on a staircase so the Watchers slip down and can't follow us up!" Raj interrupts. "Ha! Sweet!"

Aleister sighs. "I was going to suggest we fill these balloons with paint and use them to blind our enemies."

"That sounds more pratical," I admit. "Especially if we end up needing whatever staircase we might have dumped it on."

"Obviously," Aleister sniffs.

"Either way, it's sure to cause devastating injuries!" Lila chirps. "How exciting!"

"Look what I found," Raj says eagerly. "One of those curly straw things, a walkie-talkie, and this big-ass picture frame to whack people with!"

"A frame?!" Aleister sneers, snatching the hefty frame from Raj's hands. "What the devil is the point of...hrm? What's this?"

He turns the frame over to reveal the black-and-white photo within. It's a candid shot. Everett Rourke grins broadly as he plays an arcade cabinet in a game room. I can clearly make out the images of a handsome man in a suit and a woman in a leather jacket painted on the side of the cabinet, both holding pistols. I read out the inscription in the bottom of the frame:

" 'The Celestial's proprietor Everett A. Rourke gets a perfect score yet again on his favorite arcade game, a prized possession'."

"Dude!" Raj exclaims. "There must be a game room somewhere around here!"

Aleister sighs. "Needless to say, this junk will prove utterly worthless. Thank you, as always, for your contribution, Raj."

"We still have the matter of this compression oxygen tank we found. It was in a suitcase of scuba gear."

"Oh, nice!" Michelle says. "That tank is highly pressurized. If we knock off the nozzle cap, we could launch it like a missile! That'd do some damage."

"Solid idea," I concede.

"Or," Grace says, "if we store the tank underwater, say, behind the waterfall of the pool, we could hide down there in case we're being chased, without having to come up for air."

"That's not a bad idea, either," I say thoughtfully. "But...I'm a little worried the Watchers might end up being killer bees."

"...Killer bees?" Lila repeats.

Grace sighs. "If you're being chased by killer bees, it doesn't help to jump into water, because they'll just swarm above it."

"There's also the the time factor in getting the tank on, and the fact that there's only one tank and thirteen of us here. I think we'll have better luck with Michelle's missile idea."

"Hooray!" Lila cheers. "Good work, team! We're capable of all sorts of destruction when we work together! Let's finish setting up these traps now."

I leave them to their work, hoping to check in with Diego and the others. Instead, I bump into Jake and Estela first. They're both carrying a bunch of blunt instruments.

"And what are you guys up to?"

"Steve Rogers said we needed weapons, so we're getting weapons."

"Baseball bats and stuff," Estela clarifies. "Not that they'll make a difference."

"Why do you say that?"

"Doesn't matter what you put in someone's hands. If they don't know how to fight, they don't know how to fight."

"And nobody else here knows how to fight," Jake says grimly. "Trust me."

"What about Sean and Craig?"

"Big, tough, strong? Sure. Probably been in schoolyard fistfights. But that's nothing like when it's life or death."

"When it all hits the fan, Alodia, you're gonna wish you knew a thing or two about self-defense."

"I could teach you if you want," Jake says. "We could head down to the beach for some one-on-one time. We haven't barricaded the rear entrance yet, but it's inside the resort walls, so we'd be safe. Well, that's if you think you could handle things getting...a little rough."

"Or, you could go there with me, someone you could actually learn something from."

I look between them. "...Why don't you both teach me?"

Jake shrugs. "Works for me. Come on down to the beach. There, it won't hurt so much when you get knocked on your ass."

"I might surprise you."

About twenty minutes later, I'm in my bathing suit, standing in ankle-deep water in the high tide. Jake stands in front of me in boxer shorts, looking over my position.

"All right, widen your stance a little now."

I try to imitate him. "Like this?"

"Better. Not great. Pretty bad, actually, but better."

Observing from the beach, Estela snorts. "Not much of a teacher, are you, pilot?"

"Is that so? All right, O Captain My Captain, why don't you show us your tricks?"

Estela peels off her clothes, folds them neatly, and sets them atop a rock on the beach. She joins us in the water.

"Ever been in a fight before, Alodia?"

"...In high school, Diego and I were once jumped by a bunch of gang members in L.A. I broke one of their noses before I got cracked in the head."

Jake raises an eyebrow. "Really? Standing like that?"

"No. He was behind me, and I used my elbow. ...Bit the achilles' tendon on another one when he went for Diego."

He looks mildly impressed. "...Okay. Duly noted. Princess is a scrapper."

"Rough and tumble as they come," I admit. "Got in more catfights than I care to own up to in middle school. ...I was a biter in those days, too. ...I guess things generally came to blows pretty quickly with me."

He laughs. "God, I know what that's like."

Estela does not look amused. "Jake here is case-in-point why that's a bad idea."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means it's better to operate in the shadows. In any case, it you want to stay alive, forget everything you know. Blank slate. Everyone's worst enemy is themselves. All you have to do is turn that against them."

"What the hell is this philosophical mumbo-jumbo?"

Estela glares at him. "I thought I was teaching Alodia here, but maybe you need a lesson too."

"Look, all you gotta know is to attack with everything you've got. Be relentless. Keep them on the defensive. Don't let them collect themselves."

"No!" Estela snaps. "You should use the enemy's movements against them. Redirect their momentum and exploit it."

"Clearly we have different styles. I guess it's Princess' choice."

"Well...I admit that Jake's offensive style is probably more what I would normally go for, but maybe that's a sign I should learn Estela's technique instead. Like you said, Jake, I'm a scrapper. I know how to give 'em hell. I wanna see if there's anything to this idea of giving them their own hell."

Estela smiles. "Maybe there's hope for you yet."

Jake chuckles. "Fine, but don't come crying to me when the Watchers whoop your ass."

I line up opposite Estela, the water sloshing about my ankles.

"All right, Alodia. I'm going to attack you with a few blows, nice and slow. What you need to do is watch my movements and anticipate where I'm going. Move with me, find the openings, and grab me."

"It's kinda like we're dancing."

Estela blushes a little. "...Sure. Why not." She coughs. "Anyway, here I come."

She attacks me in slow motion. I focus on her movements, graceful but powerful. I duck under her fists and dodge her feet, her elbows, her knees. I move in close, grab her around the waist, and hurl her into the surf. She gets to her feet, shaking the excess water off her arms.

"Not bad!"

"Gotta admit, Princess, you look pretty good out there."

"Now let's try it faster."

She comes at me again, faster this time. We go on practicing for an hour or so, then pause. By that time, I'm struggling to catch my breath. Sweat trickles down my body, and the muscles in my arms and legs twitch with exertion.

"Tired?" Estela asks. "Good. Now comes the hard part."

"That wasn't the hard part?" I gasp.

"You have to spar with one of us and try out what you've learned in full-speed."

"Think you can handle it?" Jake asks with a smirk.

"But I'm exhausted!" I protest.

"That's precisely when your enemies will come for you," Estela says flatly.

"...Fine. Then I'll spar with Jake."

"Me? Sure you don't wanna start with someone a little easier?"

"Oh, stuff it, idiot!" Estela snaps, swatting him.

"Come on, Jake. What better way to test Estela's technique than against someone whose going to be attacking me with everything he's got?"

"Good point. All right, let's see what you got, Princess."

Jake launches at me with a flurry of strikes, soft enough not to damage me, but fast enough to present a challenge. I watch his movements, blocking, evading, predicting his next move.

"C'mon, Alodia! Katniss's little trick can't save you for long!"

He speeds up, but he's getting cocky. His elbow carries him too far, leaving his abdomen exposed. My fist swoops under his arms and connects with its target. He doubles over, winded.

" _Kff..._ Good...hit..." he admits.

He theatrically topples over onto the wet sand. I pounce on him, pinning his wrists.

"Surrender?"

He grins up at me. "To you? Always."

I smile back at him, holding his gaze for a long moment. Time seems to slow down as I study his face. ...It's such a nice face. I wonder that I haven't taken the time to appreciate it before now. I like the way it looks when he's smirking, when we're bantering together. And then sometimes he looks at me with such kindness and caring...

He gently frees his wrists and brings his hands up to my ribs, carefully touching the two claw wounds still fresh on my body. Our plunge in the ocean after fighting the sea monster stripped the bandage off me, and I haven't replaced it yet.

"...Wish these would hurry up and heal," he murmurs.

"...That makes two of us." I squirm a little. The wounds are scabbing over, but they're still sore, especially to touch. He takes his hands off my ribs and lightly strokes my forearms.

"Have you cleaned them since we got back?"

"No..."

"Do it. Please. ASAP. We might survive this attack, but if you then end up getting an infection..." He trails off. "...I'll ask Michelle, but I doubt we've got antibiotics on hand, and..."

"...And sepsis is not how we want to see you go," Estela finishes. "Not that we want to see you go at all."

We towel off and pull our clothes back on.

"So, how'd I do?"

"You showed some mettle," Estela concedes. "Those tricks will come in handy."

"Yeah. When all hell breaks loose, I bet you'll last five, six seconds!"

"Maybe even seven," Estela adds with a smirk.

"Great. Thanks for the vote of confidence, guys."

We re-enter the hotel by a back door. I am heading towards the elevator when I hear a cheer go up from a nearby room. I peer through the open door and find a room filled with card tables, dart boards, and arcade cabinets. Craig and Zahra are leaning over a pool table while Diego, Iris, and Murphy look on intently.

"See you guys found the game room."

Murphy bounces over to me, scurrying up my side and perching on my shoulder. Diego grins sheepishly at me.

"We were totally looking for windows to barricade, I swear. But we got a little...distracted."

"Isn't this place dope?" Craig says with a grin.

"Will you guys pipe down?" Zahra snaps. "I'm trying to focus!"

With the tip of her tongue between her teeth, she leans over her pool cue, lining up her shot. There are only two balls left on the table, a striped one and the 8-ball.

"Craig's beating Zahra," Diego stage whispers to me. "She's toast unless she makes this shot."

"I said shut it!"

"Zahra, projectile analysis predicts that at your current angle, you will miss. Allow me to assist."

Iris projects a holographic display onto the pool table, highlighting the exact direction Zahra should hit the cue ball.

"Nice! Corner pocket, callin' it!"

"What the hell, Z? That's cheating!"

Zahra lines up and takes the shot. The cue ball ricochets around the table, bouncing off the buffers, and finally knocks the last two balls into the corner pocket.

"Aw yeah!" she crows, thrusting her hips in a victory dance. "How's defeat taste, Craig? Salty like your tears!"

Murphy hops off my shoulder onto the table. Standing on his hind legs, he bounces in a circle, imitating Zahra's dance. Diego laughs delightedly.

"Aww, looks like Murphy's got some moves, too! Adorable!"

I chuckle, scratching Murphy behind his soft ears. Then I frown as my eyes come to rest on a game cabinet nestled in the corner behind Zahra. Painted on its side are a handsome man in a suit, and a woman in a leather jacket. Both are holding pistols.

"Hey, wait...I recognize that game. Raj found a picture of Rourke playing this game."

" _Most Wanted 2?_ That's that series based on those crazy murder cases in L.A., right?"

"Oh, yeah, total cult classic," Diego confirms.

"I remember the murders more than the game," I say. "How old were we, Diego? Fourteen? Fifteen?"

"Yeah, somewhere around there. I remember they had to cancel a school trip up there when the cops put the city on lockdown."

I wander over to the game cabinet and put my fingers on the controls. I feel something sizzle in my blood, and the hair on the back of my neck stands up. It reminds me of when the Watcher leader was trying to communicate with me.

"...Why am I getting the crazy feeling this game is important somehow?"

"Why don't you give it a try?" Craig suggests. "See what happens?"

"Warning," Iris chimes. "The game is notoriously difficult. Few can match Rourke's perfect score of 1,000,000."

"Well, it's worth a shot anyway..."

I put a coin in. Two options appear on the screen:

 **Press Start**

 **Press A to Enter Code**

I press start. The screen flips, and two faces appear on the screen, the same faces depicted on the side of the cabinet.

"Who should I play as? The Texas marshall or the L.A. Detective?"

"Texas marshall, definitely," Diego says. "She looks like you."

I choose my character and press start. Over my shoulder, Diego reads the dialogue.

"Hurry, Marshall! That murderous cult leader is getting away!" he cries in a theatrical baritone. Then he switches to a drawling falsetto. "We'll have to work together to catch him!"

Zahra and Craig explode with laughter, and so do I.

"Oh, God, Diego! Don't distract me, I'm trying to catch a murderous cult leader!"

"Who you wouldn't know about if it weren't for me!" he says in his drawling falsetto.

That does it for me. I'm laughing too hard to concentrate on the game. My final score is only 400,000.

"Goddammit, Diego."

"Don't blame me, Allie. You always sucked at video games."

"What was that on the start screen about a code?" Zahra asks thoughtfully.

"I've got an extra quarter," Craig says. "Give it another try."

"Well...all right..."

I put the coin in and return to the menu screen. I tap the button to enter the code. As soon as I see the four dashes, I know what to enter. I press the numbers, muttering to myself.

"...One...nine...zero...eight."

As I play the game again, everything is easier. Much easier. Pixelated enemies crumble at my lightest touch. My health bar never drops. My end score is 1,000,000.

"I did it!"

"Hell yeah! Way to cheat the system, Alodia! ...How'd you know the code?"

"Found it in the wine cellar. Didn't know it would work on the game, but I thought it was worth a shot."

Diego reads out the ending dialogue on the screen. In baritone he says, "You're going to jail, bad guy!"

On screen, the two little sprites leap up into the air and high-five.

Craig sighs. "Aw, I thought they were gonna kiss."

Another message flashes on the screen:

 **Congratulations on the high score! Enter your initials.**

"It's letting you put in a three letter name. Like first, middle, and last initial. What are you gonna enter? ARC?"

"...I don't think that would do anything. But I think I know what would."

I enter three letters: E.A.R.

"...Ear?" Craig reads.

"Everett A. Rourke."

"Guys! Look!" Diego cries. Behind us, a panel appears in the wall and slides open, revealing a hall.

Craig rubs his hands together eagerly. "Now that's what I'm talkin' about! Let's see what Rourkey-Boy was hiding!"

We venture into the hall together. It leads us to a room filled with computers and security monitors.

"...What is this place?"

"It appears to be some kind of security command center," Iris says.

I examine the console, trailing my fingers over the keyboards. Then my fingers stop on a large red button.

"T.E.R.S.? What's this?"

"Searching..." Iris chirps. "Reconstructing corrupted memory. It is the Tsunami Emergency Response System. In the event of a tidal wave, The Celestial was built with industrial steel shutters that can descend and seal off all doors and windows on the lower ten floors. Once activated, the shutters remain on lockdown for twelve hours."

"Sealing off the bottom half of the hotel from any ground attack? Hey, that sounds pretty good right about now," Diego remarks.

"Chyeah!" Craig agrees. "No way those rainforest peeps could get through that! This is a no-brainer!"

"For you, Craig, everything is a no-brainer."

I look at Zahra. "...You don't think we should do it?"

"I'm just saying...it's a twelve-hour lockdown. If they can't get in, then we can't get out. So, if something happens...let's just say I'm someone who likes to know her escape route."

I look down at the button, weighing my options. Finally, I press it. Instantly, I feel the whole building vibrate. Through the windows and on the security cameras, I see shutters lower in every room on the ground floor, blotting out the dying light of sunset. A timer appears on one of the screens, ticking down from twelve hours.

"Welp, I hope you know what you're doing." Zahra scowls. "That was rhetorical. You don't know what you're doing."

"Speak for yourself!" Diego says. "I'm gonna be sleeping a helluva lot more soundly now that we've got giant metal plates protecting us."

"Maybe there's some other stuff in this security center we can use..." I murmur. I open a few drawers and poke through their contents.

"Uh...Alodia?" The tremor in Craig's voice is so uncharacteristic that I am instantly nervous. "You're gonna wanna take a look at this."

Craig holds something out to me. A plain manilla folder. The kind I've seen before on this island. ...But this time, the picture on the front is my own.

"...Oh my god..." I whisper.

"They have a report on you, too? Allie, you gotta read it!"

I swallow hard, and accept the folder from Craig. With trembling hands, I open the cover.

Target Analysis

Clearance: Omega

Surname: _

First: _

Middle: _

D.O.B: 1996 Jan 1

Birthplace: La Huerta, Greater Antilles

Background:_ WHO IS SHE?!_

Psychological Profile: _ _

Threat Assessment: 10

Stamped on my profile is a sigil like a double-helix.

"Wh...What's this supposed to mean?!"

"And...why does it say you were born on La Huerta?" Diego asks.

"I wasn't! I wasn't born here!"

I hold the folder in quivering hands. The tremors seem to shake loose a second piece of paper, which flutters to the floor. I kneel to pick it up. This sheet of paper is much newer, as if it were printed more recently than mine, or any of the others. A picture of Aleister is printed in the top right corner of the page. But this is not a dossier like the others.

 **I.R.I.S.**

 **System-Wide Alert**

 **TIMESTAMP: 07:35 hrs**

 **UPDATE: Asset codenamed SERPENS (b. 19 Aug 1995, Cambridge, England) has somehow gained access to the plane. He is on his way to La Huerta. The guide responsible will be fired.**

 **Analysis: Situation appears problematic, but the statistics predict that this may turn out to be a good development so long as the Selected never learn his identity. Everett must be contacted immediately upon plane's arrival.**

 **Threat Assessment: 8**

"Is...is this for real?"

"Dude!" Zahra breathes. "This lists Aleister as a Rourke International asset!"

"What the hell, Iris?" Craig cries. "Why didn't you say something? This report has your name on it!"

"It certainly does, but I can assure you, I have no recollection of this data. My system restore point is from far earlier."

"...You know what this means, right?" Diego says grimly, looking at me. "Aleister is the eleventh winner. The one who shouldn't be here. It says here he's been in contact with Everett Rourke. Allie, he's been on it since the beginning."

He's been in on it since the beginning. Spying on the rest of us. He may even have been behind the destruction of Jake's plane and the boats at the marina. All of this...everything we've suffered here...

Anger bubbles up in my gut. I feel my jaw tighten.

"I think it's time we had a little chat with our classmate."

We quickly round up the others, showing them what we found. I've tucked my own dossier into my pocket. I don't want anyone else to see that who doesn't have to, and I'm sure in light of this new revelation, Zahra and Craig have mostly forgotten about it. We track Aleister to the rooftop garden. He stands with Grace by the railing, looking awkward. He clears his throat.

"...Or rather...what I'm trying to tell you is..."

"...Yes, Aleister?"

"It's simply a matter of...wanting to be forthright."

"Maybe you can start by being forthright about _this,"_ I snarl.

Aleister and Grace whip around to find us all standing behing them, glaring cold daggers at him.

"Wha...what in heaven's name are you bathering about?"

"You're a backstabbing traitor!" I spit the words. "How do you live with yourself, with all your lies?"

"You tell him, Alodia!" Craig shouts.

"You straight up disgust me, Aleister!" Zahra snaps. "You're a coward!"

"Stop!" Grace cries. "Stop all of this! Someone, please! Explain what's happening!"

I shove the report at Aleister, who accepts it with a sneer. As he reads it over, his expression goes cold. Grace, reading over his shoulder, suddenly recoils. She looks up at Aleister with a wounded expression, backing away.

"Aleister...you...you're..."

The rest of us may not matter so much, but the betrayal in Grace's eyes is clearly more than he can bear. His eyes start to shimmer. "Grace...it isn't what it looks like."

"Time to tell the truth, Aleister," Sean says firmly. "You've got one chance to tell us everything."

"How long have you been working for Everett Rourke?" Jake demands.

"I'm not-"

"Quit lying!" Michelle snaps. "It says right there that Everett was to be contacted when you arrived! You're working with him-"

"I am not!" Aleister protests. "I can't be!"

"Why not?!"

"Because I _am_ Everett Rourke!" he shouts.

Silence descends in an instant. I might think I'd suddenly gone deaf if not for the faint sounds of the jungle in the distance. But for at least ten or twenty seconds, no one has an answer to Aleister's statement. Aleister's eyes flick between each of ours, and finally his gaze lands on his shoes. When he speaks again, he speaks through a grimace.

"Not...not _the_ Everett Rourke. My name...is Everett Aleister Rourke, the Second." He looks up at us again. "The man who built this place, the man who brought all of you here...is my father."


	14. Last Night on Earth

Deafening silence descends again. I half-expect Iris to warn us that our visual input is frozen again, but it's Raj who ends up breaking it.

" _WHAT?!"_

"So it's you," Estela murmurs.

"Did _not_ see that coming!" Craig declares.

"I kinda did," Zahra mutters.

Grace looks at Aleister with utter devastation. "You...you've been lying to us?"

"Grace...I'm sorry. I...I never meant to hurt you..."

He reaches for her, but she pulls sharply away, stumbling a little in her haste. Jake steadies her with a hand on her shoulder and scowls at Aleister.

"So, wait. You're the boss man's son, and you think that's supposed to make us trust you?" He scoffs. "What's the deal? Did he plant you here to spy on us? Is he listening in right now?"

"No! For god's sake, I'm not a spy!"

"I dunno," Sean says. "I think he sounds sincere..."

"That's what spies do!" Jake retorts. "That's literally their basic job!"

"...I believe him..."

Everyone looks at me as if my ears have turned into ferrets.

"...You do?" Aleister ventures timidly.

"Really?" Jake asks incredulously.

"I mean...it does explain a lot. ...I admit this alert makes it sound as if no one at Rourke International knew he was coming. And I'd kind of expect a trained spy to be more...you know..."

"Suave?" Michelle offers. "Cool?"

"Badass?" Zahra suggests.

"Capable?" Estela mutters.

"Not, like, a huge dork?" Craig snickers.

"Enough, already!" Aleister snaps. "I take your meaning!"

"But...if you're not a spy...what are you doing here?" Grace asks. "Why did you lie your way onto the trip?"

Aleister sighs heavily and turns away, gazing out over the island. He is quiet for a long time. Finally, he draws in a deep breath.

"My whole life, all I ever wanted was his approval. His respect. For him to look at me with pride. To embrace me as his heir. He was always gone, on one business trip or another...always occupied with his resort or his research projects. My tenth birthday, he was in Kyoto, unveiling his new fusion-powered bullet train. My high school graduation, he was in Moscow, negotiating a trans-European trade agreement. And still, I thought I could impress him. If I just achieved enough...if I followed in his footsteps...he'd finally recognize me for what I am worth."

"Aleister..." Grace says softly.

"He promised me that we'd spend time together this summer," he continues, ignoring Grace. "That he'd show me the intricacies of his business. That he'd consider... _consider_...bringing me in. He canceled, of course. As he is wont to do. But that wasn't the worst part. No, the worst part was when I discovered that ten students from my very college would be randomly selected to take a trip to _his_ prized island...while he was _there._ "

"...Rourke was here?"

Aleister nods. "I sent him a furious letter. And lo and behold, I got an email inviting me to come along after all. Perhaps he meant to make amends. ...But I wasn't going to make amends. I planned to confront my father. To tell him how I truly felt. To sever myself from this blasted family, once and for all. I planned all that...but then we hit that storm. And now I realize how foolish I was. My father is gone. Dead, for all I know. And I'm stranded here, where I'll probably die too, and he'll never know my true feelings."

I regard Aleister's back for a moment, digesting his words. ...They don't sit well.

"...Aleister, that's pathetic!" I snap.

"Alodia!" Quinn cries, shocked.

"No," Aleister sighs. "Alodia is right. I have been pathetic. All this time, crawling in my father's wake, yearning for tiny scraps of his approval like a dog begging at his master's side..."

"...This is getting weird," Raj mutters.

"I don't need him," Aleister growls. "I don't need his approval. I don't need his _love!_ "

An uneasy glance passes between the rest of us.

"Aleister," Quinn says at last. "I understand why you got yourself onto the trip. But why did you lie to us after we landed? Why not tell us the truth?"

He shrugs. "I didn't trust you. I thought if you knew who I was, you'd want to blame me. Or use my connections. Then, when the situation became clear, it was too late. I'd already lied. And I thought that if you found out the truth, you'd assume I was involved."

"Gee, I wonder why," Jake mutters.

"I wanted to tell you," Aleister says softly. "I did. But...I..."

"Not to interrupt the therapy session," Estela cuts in, "but does anyone else see _that_?"

She points over the railing towards the sprawling jungle. Reaching out from the canopy of trees like grasping fingers are six columns of smoke.

"...The Watchers," Craig murmurs.

"They're not hiding anymore," Jake says grimly. "They're gearing up."

"Getting ready for war," Estela agrees.

"My guess is they'll strike at first light."

The wind that blows over us is cool, even chilly. Suddenly, it doesn't seem to matter who Aleister's father is. The truth is, I would almost welcome Rourke's presence right now. The presence of someone who knows this island's secrets...

"...I'm...gonna go back downstairs," Raj mutters.

"Me too," Michelle says, following him.

"Yeah," Jake murmurs. "No point in staying up here."

Murphy huddles between my feet, whining. One by one, everyone drifts down the stairs, back into the hotel. Finally, I follow with Murphy, leaving Aleister alone on the rooftop, gazing into the night.

I wander back to my room and immediately stash the I.R.I.S. Alert and my own dossier with the others. Every muscle in my body quivers with anxiety and anticipation. I have to do something to keep myself from going crazy.

I strip down and rinse my clothes out in the sink, rubbing them with a little shampoo. I note that the climbing outfit Quinn gave me is in remarkably good shape. The hiking boots may have been lost when the speed boat flipped over, but miraculously, the knife is still in its sheath. The climbing gloves also survived.

I examine my own body in the mirror and wince. I'm an absolute mess. Scratches and dark, angry bruises stand out starkly on my pale skin, and my hair is a briny, matted rat's nest. The soles of my feet are swollen, and more sore than I realized before now. I turn on the shower. After all, I did promise Jake I'd clean the wounds on my ribs.

A good scrub with a loufa full of fragrant soap and a chance to wash the seawater out of my hair do wonders to calm me down. I wrap myself in a towel and take my time applying lotion and combing through my hair. I carefully apply a fresh bandage to my ribs, and put my clothes back on. Then, on impulse, I grab my makeup bag. I don't put on much, just enough to mask my exhaustion and put a little color back in my face, but the result makes me smile. For the first time in three days, I feel attractive.

I also feel hungry. I get dressed and wander down to the restaurant into the kitchen to fix myself a sandwich. Raj and Zahra are already there, laying out an array of bottles collected from the bar. They look up briefly as I pull out sandwich fixings from the refrigerator, then return to their conversation.

"It's gotta be strong, right?" Zahra says. "We can agree on that?"

"Oh, yeah. Definitely a couple shots of hard liquor in there. I'm thinking rum, because tropical island?"

"Naw naw, you drink rum when you're kicking back on the beach. If you're facing certain death, you gotta go with whiskey."

"True, but that doesn't pair as well with blue curacao, and we gotta have blue curacao. Because, you know, the Watchers have blue skin."

"I was gonna ask about that. So, are they like, just the dudes from _Avatar?_ "

"Nah, those were like, blue cat people. These are like, blue-and-green plant people. Which reminds me, should we put something herby in it? Like some mint maybe?"

I wander over, a turkey sandwich in my hands.

"What are you two up to?"

"Trying to make the perfect drink for the night," Raj explains. "Something that says, 'fun and friendship in the face of likely death.'"

I laugh. "That sounds awesome!"

"You think so?"

"Yeah. I mean, we've barricaded the doors, made some weapons, done everything we can to protect ourselves. I've just taken a long shower, put on some makeup, and made myself my favorite sandwich. Why shouldn't we all have a drink? For old time's sake if nothing else."

"Exactly!" Zahra agrees.

"This may be a weird thing to say, but I really do admire your optimism. You guys somehow manage to find an upside in some pretty dark situations."

Zahra shrugs. "Hey, he's the optimist. I just like drinking."

"When you guys figure your drink out, I'd love to try it."

"We'll let you know."

I wander out into the restaurant, munching on my sandwich. The energy out here is tense, dread palpable. The shutters from the tsunami defense system block out the floor-to-ceiling windows, and any view of the island. Lila is in the corner, examining the shutters while Iris looks on. Craig and Michelle sit at one of the tables. I walk over to them and take a seat.

"Hey, Alodia," Michelle says. "Careful, your sandwich is leaking."

"Oh, thanks." I lick up a wayward glob of tomato flesh from the bottom of the sandwich, squishing the seeds between my front teeth. Michelle makes a face.

"...Eww."

"Hey, Michelle," Craig says, "You're smart, right?"

"Compared to you, Craig, who isn't?"

"I just mean, whaddya think our odds are? Against the Watchers, I mean? I bed I could take two, maybe three of them hand-to-hand...but if they've got swords? Or like, they're riding dinosaurs?"

"...Why would they be riding dinosaurs?"

"I dunno. Just seems like the kind of thing they'd do."

"Look, Craig, I have absolutely no idea what our odds are. I don't think anyone does. ...I just know that I sure as hell don't want to die here."

"I mean, none of us _want_ to die," Craig says.

"I know, but...it would be just so unfair. I had a whole life planned out, and I'm not going to get to live any of it. I was going to graduate with honors, do a medical residency in New York, become a world-renowned neurosurgeon...get married to...I mean...in..." She trails off, swallowing hard, her eyes shimmering. "It doesn't matter. It's stupid. It just can't all end here. Not like this."

"Michelle..." Her broken expression is making my heart squeeze. I can't help putting a hand on her shoulder. "Just look at what we've survived so far. Sabertooth tigers, giant crabs, boiling magma...we outsmarted the observatory..."

"Also remember that time I saved everyone from falling off a cliff?" Craig adds. "Cuz I totally did that."

"That's right. We've faced death a dozen times since we got here. And every time, we beat it. I don't know what's going to happen. I don't know what the Watchers are going to try, or what we're going to do. I'm not going to give some Sean-esque speech about challenges making us stronger or promise that we're going to get through this. But I have to say that I believe we will. With all my heart. Because I believe in _us._ If this island has proven anything, it's that this is a strong, capable group, and that we _can_ get through this."

"Not gonna lie, Alodia," Craig says with a smirk, "that was a corny-ass speech."

"It was corny, cliché, and totally ungrounded in reality," Michelle agrees. But then a smile softens her face. "But...it was also kind of nice."

"Well...I try."

I finish my sandwich and stand up again. I don't feel up to staying in one place very long. Licking mayonnaise from my fingers, I wander over to Lila and Iris.

"These shutters are made of an experimental chromium-tungsten alloy," Iris is saying.

"Fantastic! Needless to say, no one is getting in."

"Or out," Iris agrees. "For the next twelve hours."

"You mean...if someone does get in...we're trapped?"

"I can answer that question, but my Positive Social Interaction module suggests that it might be better not to."

Lila frowns, but only for a moment. Then her usual broad smile returns. "Well, I do like a good challenge!"

"Indeed. 'Appreciates adversity' and 'responds well to pressure' are listed as dominant traits on your employee profile."

Lila stops and turns to Iris slowly.

"Iris...what else does it say about me?"

"Oh, plenty. 'Excellent outdoor skills'...'Upbeat and encouraging attitude'...'Could use some sensitivity training'...There is more, but it is Gamma classified. And my current build is only cleared for Epsilon and lower."

"...Good."

"Hey...Lila?"

She turns to me. "Oh! Hello, Alodia. You startled me."

"Sorry. I was just wondering...Did you know that Aleister was Rourke's son?"

She blinks. "Well, yes, of course. But Mr. Rourke has always asked that we protect his family's privacy, and I felt it was my duty not to expose Aleister."

"Okay, I get normally, but like...even in this situation? Maybe our survival is more important than company policy?"

"A Rourke employee is always on the job!" she says cheerfully.

"It is true," Iris confirms. "That is item 7 in the company handbook."

"Iris, did you know Aleister was Rourke's son?"

"I do not currently have his personal file. But my scan of his D.N.A. did suggest it."

"Uh...how often do you scan our D.N.A.?"

"Don't answer that!" Lila hisses.

"Is there anything else you're not telling us? Anything else you know about this place?"

"I am telling you everything I have been cleared to tell you in my capacity as a tour guide for Rourke International!" Lila says haughtily.

"...Right..."

At that moment, Grace wanders into the restaurant. She doesn't acknowledge any of us. She wanders to a table in the corner and sits down by herself. She sighs and rests her chin in her hands, staring into space. I walk over and take a seat beside her.

"Hey."

"Oh...hey..."

"...You want a drink or anything? Raj and Zahra are making a signiture cocktail..."

"No, thank you. I don't feel like anything."

She runs her finger along the edge of the table, then up over the surface, letting the natural oil on her fingertip leave a streak.

"...Is this about Aleister?"

She blushes. "No. I mean...a little...okay, yes." She sighs. "Like, I get why everyone's mad at him. He shouldn't have lied. That was wrong, I agree. But...I also understand why he did it. I understand why he felt he had no choice. And he must feel so bad..."

"...Is that all?" When she doesn't respond right away, I press a little further. "...Because I know we're friends, but if I messed up and got everyone mad at me, I don't think you'd be this distressed."

Grace looks at me and sighs again. "Look, I'm not the most...socially skilled person in the world. And maybe I'm just misreading the signs. But for awhile there, it felt like...like he was opening up to me. Like he was dropping that acerbic, bitter shell and showing me his real self."

"...You like him."

"...I do. And now I might never have a chance to tell him so."

"Why not? He's hardly left the resort."

She looks startled. "You...you think I should tell him? Now?"

"We're stranded on a mysterious island full of terrifying creatures, and there's an army of blue-skinned warriors gearing up to attack us. If there was ever a time to tell a guy you like how you feel, it's now."

A smile plays around her mouth. "Yeah. Okay. Yeah, you're right." She closes her eyes, taking in several deep breaths. "Grace Tamara Hall...you got this. ...Do...you think you could come with me? For moral support?"

"Absolutely. Let's go find Aleister."

As nobody seems to have seen Aleister leave the rooftop, we start there. We find him there, huddled against the railing, clutching a bleeding hand, shards of broken glass scattered around him. Grace gasps.

"Aleister! You're hurt!" She hurries over to kneel beside him. He looks up in surprise.

"Grace? What are you-"

"What happened?"

"I...accidentally smashed a glass. Cut my hand. Quite unfortunate."

"Let me see..." She takes his hand gently, pulling it towards her, but he snatches it back.

"It's fine!" he snaps. "Just leave me be! I can handle it!"

"You're bleeding badly, Aleister. We need to wrap this up." She firmly takes hold of his hand and looks around for something to wrap it.

I pluck a large, thick leaf from an unusual plant potted nearby. "Here. Use this for now."

Grace accepts the leaf and wraps it around the cut. It's large enough for the flat leaf and stem both to wrap around his hand several times. Aleister winces.

"...Better?"

"Mmm. Perhaps a little," he admits. "Now leave me be."

"Wait...I...I wanted to..."

"I said go, Grace! Please, I beg of you!"

"Hey! Asshole!" I snap impatiently. "Shut up and listen to her!"

Aleister blinks at me, stunned into silence. I glare at him for a moment, daring him to protest, but he keeps his mouth shut. I nod at Grace to go ahead.

"I...I just...I wanted to tell you how I feel. How I really feel." She swallows and takes a deep breath before rushing on. "I know you're not the most friendly person. I know that it's hard for you to open up, to connect to people, to make friends."

"I never needed them," he mutters.

"Come one, Aleister. You know that's not true. You've clearly had a hard life. And you've built up these walls to protect yourself, to keep yourself from getting close to others, to keep them from hurting you. ...Hurting you the way your father did."

"And what makes you so certain you know me so well?"

"Don't you get it, Aleister? I know because I'm exactly the same. My mother only cares about one thing: that I'm number one in everything, no matter the cost. All my life, I've had to deal with her pressure bearing down on my shoulders. I got straight A's. I got prestigious awards. I interned at her company and excelled at all my tasks. And yet..."

"...It was never enough," he finishes for her.

"Exactly."

"Grace, I...I had no idea we had so much in common..."

"Neither did I. And yet, in a weird way, I feel like maybe I kind of did. From the minute we got off that plane, I felt drawn to you. And as totally insane as this past week has been, the highlight has been the time we've spent together. You're smart and interesting and you have a real kindness in you, buried so deep...like diamonds at the heart of a thousand feet of stone."

"Grace...you...you understand me..."

"Of course, you dummy," she says, smiling shyly. She steps up close to him and stretches up on her tiptoes to plant a kiss on his cheek. Aleister's pale cheeks turn red. Blushing herself, Grace looks away. "I _like_ you."

"And I like—heavens!" He cuts himself off, holding up his injured hand and unwrapping the leaf. Underneath the makeshift bandage, the cut has disappeared. I gasp.

"...Holy...!"

"Remarkable!" Grace exclaims.

"Truly!" Aleister agrees.

"The plant leaf! Perhaps it's a hyper-evolved form of aloe..."

"It could be, but that doesn't explain the rapid speed of recovery. It's somehow reconstructed the cell tissue itself."

"Amazing! Do you think that maybe it's in relation to the serum genrated by the...Alodia? Where are you going?"

I've plucked a few more leaves from the plant, and I'm heading towards the elevator.

"I think you two have got it from here. In the meantime, we've got a few more wounded who could use these plants. Myself included."

In the bathroom in my suite, I strip off my shirt and peel back the bandage on my ribs. Carefully, I press one of the leaves to my wounds and reapply the bandage. The skin under the leaf tingles pleasantly. Then, I gasp as the area starts to grow warm, but it never crosses into burning. Any lingering pain recedes rapidly. I can actually feel edges of the wounds knitting together. Within three minutes, I peel back the bandage to find perfect pink skin underneath. I toss away the bandage, pull my shirt back on and rush to find Craig.

He's still with Michelle in the kitchen. When I demonstrate the plants abilities on the knife wound on Craig's arm, they both rush to the rooftop to find more. ...It's only after they're on their way that I remember that Aleister and Grace might still be up there. Oh, well. If they want privacy, they can get a room. They certainly have their pick of rooms here.

I wander back out to the lobby where several of my friends are loitering. Jake lounges by the bar. Estela runs combat drills by the door. Sean sits on a couch in front of a coffee table spread with hotel blueprints. Quinn sprawls in an armchair, dozing off.

Diego rounds a corner and wanders up to me, a bag of potato chips in hand.

"Hey, Allie. What's up?"

"I played matchmaker for Grace and Aleister and ended up finding some magic healing plants on the roof." I lift my shirt to show him my ribs.

"Woah! Plants did that?"

"Plants did that. And it looks like there are plenty of them. Michelle and Craig went to gather more."

"Clearly playing matchmaker means good karma. I'm just glad you're better. One less thing for me to stress over."

"...How're you holding up, Diego?"

"Oh, you know, ups and downs. Peaks and valleys. Found some chips in the kitchen, gonna get murdered by a bunch of _Lord of the Rings_ rejects...the usual."

"Least you got chips, though."

"Salt and vinegar, baby. The best. Hey!" He yelps indignantly as I dig into the bag and come up with a handful.

"I call best friend privileges." I cram the chips into my mouth.

"Brat." He pauses a moment, looking out over the others in the lobby. "Sooooooooo, Allie...you gonna...you know..."

I transfer a mouthful of salt-and-vinegar mush to one cheek. "Am I gonna what?"

"Do I seriously have to spell it out? Make a move!"

I choke on the remaining chip crumbs in my mouth. "Wh-what?"

"Obviously, swallow the chips first! But come on, Allie. I've seen the way you've been acting. Flirting, teasing, staring out with those _ba-dump ba-dump_ heart eyes. Seriously, what are you waiting for? Go get that steamy R-rated action!"

"I...I mean...now?"

"This might be our last night on earth, Allie. What better time?"

"Sure you're not just trying to cash in on my matchmaker good karma?"

"I'm not sure I'm really playing matchmaker unless I'm also encouraging him, but a little good karma can't hurt."

"...Heh...you sure it's a him this time?"

"Alodia Rose Chandler, when are you going to learn that nothing gets past me?" He smiles knowingly, looking over at the bar, where Jake nurses a glass of whiskey. "...I know you too well, Allie."

"...What do you think of him?"

"I think he's hot and crazy about you. I think you're crazy about him, too. You're a good match and he has the potential to be really good for you. I know my money was on Quinn or Sean at first, but they don't fit you like he does."

I consider his words. The truth of them is undeniable. Diego does know me better than anyone in the world knows me. As beautiful as Quinn is, as much as I liked kissing her, I feel I could be content simply holding her in my arms, having her in my life, making her laugh and generally basking in her presence. Sean is a sweet guy, and he could certainly get my blood up without much effort, but I think if we tried to be a couple, we'd drive each other crazy.

I am a little surprised I didn't recognize my feelings for Jake long before. Perhaps it all seemed too simple, easy as it was to become comfortable with him. But I have to confess, he makes me want to flirt and tease and entice and seduce. He makes me want to protect him, to stand at his side or his back and fight with him and have him fight with me _._ I can't predict how we might turn out down the road, but he makes me want to try.

"...You really think he and I could work?"

"I absolutely believe you could. But no one will know anything for sure unless something happens. So go over there and make something happen."

I look at my best friend for a moment, then pull him into a crushing embrace. "...I love you, Diego. You know that, right?"

"I know. I love you back, Allie."

I pull back and take a deep breath. "...How do I look?"

He reaches up to smooth my hair with his clean hand. "In that outfit? Like a blonde Lara Croft. Sexy as hell. Here, though." He reaches into his pocket and pulls out a box of breath mints. "Take one of these first. Salt and vinegar are delicious on chips, but not on your lover's lips."

I laugh, taking the mint. I chew it down, letting the chilly flavor permeate my mouth. Then I move towards the bar, pausing to give Diego a subtle thumbs-up. He returns it, then slips back to the kitchen.

I sidle up to Jake and tap him on the shoulder. He turns towards me with a lopsided grin.

"Help ya with something, Princess?"

"Got some good news."

"Yeah? What's that?"

"No need to clean those sabertooth scratches anymore. We found some magic plants on the roof. Check it out." I show him the healed skin.

"Holy shit!" He brings up a hand to cup my ribcage, running his fingers along the spot where the wounds used to be. "Not even a trace of a scar. I think this may be the best thing this godforsaken island has done for me."

If I had any doubts left about Jake before this moment, his words and the way my skin tingles under his touch have banished them from my mind. I take his face in my hands and press my lips to his. He hesitates for just a moment before kissing me back. I pull back just a bit.

"...You wanna come up to my room?" I whisper.

"...Yeah," he whispers back. "...Yeah, I do."

We're both silent as we take the elevator up to the penthouse floor. Jake twines his fingers in mine, and I squeeze his hand. I don't let go as I dig my room key out of my pocket and fit it in the lock. A nervous, electric energy passes between us, quivering in the air. A sense of anticipation, exciting and a little scary at once. I lead him over to the window, hands still entwined. We look out over the jungle, at the columns of smoke rising from the treetops, into the beautiful night sky. The lights in the room cast our reflections onto the windows. I meet his eyes in the glass.

"...Hey, you," I say softly, a smile spreading over my lips.

He smiles back. "...Hey."

We turn towards each other. Then, as if responding to a starter's gun, we come together in a passionate, frenzied kiss. I wrap my arms around his neck, feeling my back slam into the window. He presses his hips against mine, his mouth working down my neck, biting, nuzzling, kissing. My breath starts to come faster, my heart pounding agaisnt my ribs.

"Oh, God," I gasp.

I wrestle Jake's jacket from his shoulders, letting it fall to the floor. I grab the bottom of his shirt and tug it up insistantly. He breaks away just long enough to rip it off and throw it aside before pushing me against the widow again, kissing down my collarbone.

"God, you're gorgeous," he murmurs.

"Less talking, more kissing," I growl. I run my hands along his naked torso, feeling the taut, firm muscle.

"Wouldn't you like tha—ah!" He gasps as I bite lightly at his shoulder. "Oh, that's it!"

He rips off my knife belt and pulls my tank top off over my head. His hands are all over me, stroking, grasping, caressing. His fingers find my nipples and make circles around them. I push him away from the window, working towards the bed. We stagger along the wall, kissing so rough it almost hurts, his beard prickling against my skin. A chair in our path gets toppled over, and I hear the sound of a vase smashing, but neither of us pause, except to take off another article of clothing and throw it aside. We're both in our underpants when I feel my back slam against the dresser. Jake hoists me up onto it. I wrap my legs around him, pulling him tight against me.

"Oh, God, don't you dare stop," I gasp, my body already slick with sweat. He kisses me hungrily, hands running up my thighs to the waistband of my panties. I run my fingers through his long hair, grasping handfuls as I feel him grinding against me. He brings his hands up to clutch the sides of my face. He pulls back just a little and presses his forehead to mine.

"...I've never wanted anything as badly as I want you," he whispers.

"Then have me."

I wrap my arms around his neck, kissing him hard. He pulls me close and lifts me off the dresser, carrying me over to the bed. We shed the last of our clothes and collapse onto the bed together, finally giving into our desires.

For awhile, all that exists for me is pleasure. It's rough, it's wild, it hurts a little, but that's exactly how I like it. I dig my fingertips into his flesh and he tugs my hair and pushes hard and bites just hard enough to let me feel it. I arch my back and push against him, feeling a thrill run through me when I feel him respond. I moan with pleasure, crying his name as I cross my threshold. Moments afterward, I feel him give a telltale shudder.

"...Alodia..." he gasps. "Alodia..."

He rolls carefully off me, onto his back. I scoot over, draping my arm around him and laying my head on his chest. I let one leg twine with his. For a moment, we both just lie gasping for breath. He brings a hand up to stroke my hair.

"Well...the room's trashed," he says when he can speak again.

"Don't give a damn," I reply.

"Me neither."

I pull myself towards his face to kiss him. He kisses back, tenderly now that we're both spent.

"That was something else, Top Gun." I smile down at him, brushing a strand of hair from his cheek.

He smiles back, cupping my cheek. "You're something else, Princess."

I chuckle. "Was that the gruff, no-nonsense Jack McKenzie saying something sentimental? Now I've seen everything."

"What can I say, Princess? You've got that effect on me." He strokes my cheek with the back of his hand. I take his hand in mine and kiss his fingers one at a time. Then I let my fingers twine with his and lay my head on his chest again.

"...Think we're gonna get through this thing? Get off this island and go back home?"

Jake is quiet. For a moment, I feel the hand that was stroking my hair pause. Then, it resumes. He brings the hand that is twined with his up to his mouth and kisses it.

"Make it through this? ...Probably. Get off this island? Hope so." He sighs. "But if there's one thing I know for sure, it's that I'm never going back home."

"...Why not?"

He is quiet again for a very long time. Then he draws in a breath and lets it out slowly.

"...I'm a wanted man, Alodia. The second I set foot on U.S. Soil, they'll put me in handcuffs and send me to prison for life."

I lift my head to look him in the eye, frowing.

"Seriously? What were you, like, a bank robber? A drug dealer?" A thought occurs to me, and I sit up slowly. "Were you...lying about being in the navy?"

He reaches out a hand to wrap it around my waist, silently asking me not to pull away.

"No, Alodia. All that was true. I joined the Naval Academy at eighteen, and I was the best damn pilot they'd ever seen."

I think back to the dossier that's still stuck under the mattress we're lying on. Provided the information Rourke International is working from is accurate, it would seem to corroborate what he's telling me now. ...But more than that, what convinces me is the way he looks in my eyes when he speaks. There is no hint of deception. Just...sorrow. Longing. I stay sitting up, but I scoot close to him, folding my legs to the side. I reach out to stroke his hair.

"...What is it, then?"

He takes my other hand, holding it tightly.

"...The academy is where I met Mike."

"Mike?"

"My bunkmate. Growing up, I always made more enemies than friends, but Mike and I hit it off right away. He was funny and smart...kept me from screwing up too bad...always tried to talk me outta fights, but always had my back when he failed..."

"You guys were close."

"Yeah. ...I think you may be the only person on this rock who could understand how close. You might say Mike was my Diego."

"That clarifies absolutely everything," I agree, feeling a swell of affection for my Diego. "...Your best friend. Your brother. He always knows just what you need to hear, even when you don't want to hear it. Always has your back, whether or not you deserve it..."

"...Always gets you out of whatever trouble you've gotten yourself into," he adds, smiling. "Yeah. ...I loved him like a brother. Best day of my life was when we got assigned to the same deployment. When we were up in the sky, flying side-by-side...one of the few times in my life I could say I really felt happy."

I cup his cheek, stroking the edge of his beard with my thumb. "...What happened, Jake?"

He tugs my arm gently. An invitation. A request to lie beside him. I do, curling up against him with my head on his chest. He holds me tightly.

"We were running recon missions off the coast of Kharzistan, aiding a rebellion, when Mike discovered something. Our commander was this real piece of work by the name of Rex Lundgren. Kinda guy who always talked tough, so long as he was picking on someone who couldn't fight back. Turns out he was up to a lot more than bullying. Ol' Commander Lundgren had a nice little business on the side. He was forging paperwork to request weapons we didn't need...and selling them directly to the tyrants we were supposed to be fighting."

"Oh, my god..." I shiver, closing my eyes and curling more tightly around him.

"Mike and I were going to report him. But while we were gathering evidence, Lundgren somehow found out. He sent us on what he claimed was a standard recon mission...but it turned out to be a damn ambush. Kharzistan military shot us out of the sky. I ejected in time. Mike...didn't."

I can't speak for a moment. My throat is tight with tears. I can't help but imagine my own best friend as Mike. I can't help but imagine myself living while Diego died. The thought feels like being vivisected, but I can't fully push it out of my head.

"Please tell me you got revenge," I whisper at last.

"Oh, I wanted to. Believe me. I spent a week out there, crawling through the desert behind enemy lines, hunted by the dictator's forces, and all I could think about was my hands around Lundgren's neck. But when I got back to the base...he was waiting. Along with a pair of M.P.s."

"...Military police."

"He'd doctored the records. Made it look like Mike and I were the traitors. They came to arrest me. I punched Lundgren right in his worthless face, dove out the window, and ran like hell. Been running ever since. Hiding out in Costa Rica."

"God, Jake...I'm so sorry...about Mike...about all of it..."

"Not gonna lie. It still hurts like hell. After that, I figured, well, that's what I deserve for letting someone get that close to me. I wasn't going to make the same mistake again. I wasn't going to let anyone else in." He brings his other arm up to encircle me, and squeezes me. I feel him kiss the top of my head. "...Then I met you."

"...Jake..."

He suddenly pushes me back, sitting straight up in bed.

"Did you see that?"

I sit up beside him. "See what?"

"I thought I saw something move outside. Just by the window..."

"...We're nowhere near the ground floor..."

"Yeah, I know, that's why I'm-"

He's cut off by a sudden explosion. Glass sprays into the room as the widow shatters. We both cry out, and Jake pushes me down onto the bed, shielding me with his body. As the glass settles and I look up, a pair of golden eyes locks with mine, glowing in the darkness. The Watcher leader stands in the room, the rope he swung in on dangling outside the destroyed window. Jake leaps up, pulling me with him.

"Alodia, run!"


	15. The Battle of the Celestial

We make for the door, not worrying about the fact that we're both still naked. But the Watcher leaps into our path. Jake puts himself between me and the enemy.

"Stay behind me!"

He charges the intruder, but the Watcher leaps, round-house kicking him. Jake staggers back with a pained grunt. I rush forward to steady him and see blood trickling from the corner of his mouth.

"Do not resist!" Just as on the beach, the Watcher speaks in an unknown tongue, but I hear his words in English in my head. "Accept your fate."

Jake wipes at his mouth. "Unless that means 'You order room service?', it's time for you to go, Blue's Clues."

"Jake!" I cry out as he charges again. This time, he takes the Watcher by surprise and wrestles him to the floor. I watch helplessly as they grapple, rolling over each other through the field of shattered window glass. I search for a weapon, search for an opening, but Jake and the Watcher are wrapped up in each other, moving too quickly for me to get in.

I never see how it happens. I never see any weapon in the Watcher's hand, never see the danger. But Jake suddenly goes stiff, choking, his eyes wide. The Watcher leaps back, stunned. He looks down at his hands. They're smeared with blood that gleams black in the moonlight.

" _Jake!"_

My voice sounds shrill to my own ears, high and frantic. Heedless of the glass, I rush over, falling to my knees beside him as he twitches on the floor. Blood soaks the carpet beneath him, spreading in a dark stain. Protruding from deep within his stomach, glinting wickedly in the moonlight, is a massive shard of broken glass.

"No..." I whisper. "Oh, God, please no..."

Jake's trembling lips attempt to curve into a smile, but there is a film of tears in his eyes. "Heh...that bad, huh?"

"It was...he resisted..." Even in my head, the Watcher's voice trembles. "It was not meant to end like this for him."

I ignore him. I clutch Jake's hand, but his grip is already going slack. Tears well in my eyes as I bend over him, stroking his hair with a trembling hand. "Stay with me, Jake. Please just stay with me. I'll get some of the plants on the roof. You'll be fine..."

"...Don't...feel like there's time...for that..." he rasps.

I choke on a sob. "Don't leave me, Jake. You can't leave me..."

"Hey...none of that now...Don't cry over a...nobody like me..." He gasps in agony, a tear trickling from the corner of his eye. "You've got...your whole life...ahead of you, Princess...ain't nobody...gonna...take...that..."

He exhales...and he does not breathe in again. I feel my head shake. A ridiculous gesture. As if I can bring him back by forbidding him to die. That is the thought that brings it all crashing down on me.

...He's dead. Jake is dead. I...I barely knew him...he barely knew me...but I liked him. And he liked me. And we tossed around in bed together and he shared his secret with me. ...He must have trusted me...And now he's dead. ...We could have been good for each other...we might have fit well together...but now we'll never know. All that potential between us... We could have lasted forever. He might have been my soulmate. Or we might have broken each other's hearts, ended up hating each other. ...But now we'll never know. Anything sweet or sour that we might have known together is gone. Destroyed.

I double over, sick with anguish, sobs wracking my body. My head fills with fluid that spills onto my face from my eyes, nose, and mouth. It's disgusting, but I don't care.

"Jake..." I whimper. "...No...Jake..."

"This...changes nothing," the Watcher says. "You must come."

He puts a hand on my shoulder. I react instantly, tearing at him, striking his face.

"You killed him, you bastard!" I scream, clawing at him "You killed him!"

He shifts his weight, flipping and pinning me down. I scream like a wild animal. Rage floods my every sense, powered by indescribable grief. Pain fills my every cell, driving me to madness. I reach up and grab his necklace by the glowing blue stone nestled at the hollow of his throat. I rip it free of his neck, raising a fist to strike him with it, but the rage consuming me suddenly fades. Suddenly, I feel small and helpless as a child abandoned and all I can think of is Jake smiling only minutes ago, entwined with me in bed...

My world flashes white, and then pale blue. ...And then, he's there. Jake smiles up at me as I cup his cheek in my hand.

"What can I say, Princess? You've got that effect on me." I blink at him, too disoriented even to be shocked. He chuckles. "Come on, I know it's a cheesy line, but it ain't that bad. What's with the face?"

I sit up straight, my body tingling like I've just put my finger in an electrical socket. I can still feel the blood on my hands...

He sits up, frowning. "...Everything okay?"

"Jake...? Is it really you?"

Without waiting for an answer, I pull him into my arms, tears rising in my eyes again.

"Woah, woah, woah!" He holds me back, rocking me. "Alodia, you're shaking like a leaf! What's wrong?"

I open my eyes, and realize there's something in my hand. ...It's the Watcher's necklace. Except that the stone, once a nebulous blue, is now a cold, leaden grey. I pull my arms back from around Jake to examine the stone more closely.

"...Where'd you get that?" he asks.

"...It was real..." I whisper.

"Okay, you're, uh...starting to freak me out a little."

I look up sharply as my mind starts to catch up to the events around me. I meet Jake's eyes.

"...Do you trust me?"

He smirks. "I guess you could say that."

"Then I need you to come with me right now." I grab his hand and pull him off the bed, diving into the closet and pulling the door shut. The light through the narrow slats leaves thin golden lines on the darkened closet floor. I peer through the slats, eyes on the window.

"So, is this a sex thing I haven't heard of, or..."

" _Shhh!_ " I hiss.

From where I am huddled, I can see a shadow pass over the moon. Then the window explodes in a hail of glass. The Watcher leader lands gracefully on his feet, glass gleaming around him in the moonlight.

"What the hell?!" Jake gasps. "How did yo-"

I clap my hand over his mouth. He pulls me close to him in the darkness. We watch as the Watcher looks around the room with his eyes narrowed, perplexed. He roams slowly around the room, over to the bed, examining our discarded clothes, the smashed vase, the toppled chair. He stops in front of the closet. Jake and I hold our breath, clinging to each other. Finally, the Watcher turns and heads into the hallway.

We exhale slowly. After taking a moment to make sure the coast is clear, we creep carefully out of the closet. I look at the sparkling glass shards spread over the carpet and shiver, remembering how Jake bled out in my arms.

"...You wanna tell me what happened back there?"

I look at him with tears in my eyes. Haltingly, I explain. How the Watcher took us by surprise. How the two of them struggled...the massive glass shard, either buried in the carpet or in the Watcher's hand—I never saw which...how he died in my arms...the rage that consumed me and how I went for the Watcher, grabbing the stone from around his neck.

"All I wanted was to be back in bed with you, before it all went wrong. ...And when I touched this...well...there I was. Back in bed with you. The moment before it all went wrong."

Jake looks properly shaken, which shouldn't be a surprise, since I just told him that I watched him die. He sinks down onto the bed, his face pale.

"...Things are getting weirder by the minute around here." He sets his jaw and looks up at me. "...But right now, that guy's roaming the halls looking for us. We've gotta warn the others."

We gather our discarded clothes and throw them on in a rush. I'm pretty sure my underwear is backwards, but there's no time to worry about that. I strap on my knife belt as we slip into the hallway. Jake pulls me against the wall and peeks around the corner. He holds up two fingers. ...Two Watchers.

"How did they get in?" I whisper.

"No way they got through the shutters. A few of 'em must've gotten on the roof and rappeled down." He sighs, rubbing a hand over his face. He looks down at me achingly. "I really hate to do this...but we've gotta split up if we're gonna warn everybody in time."

I nod. "I don't want to leave you, either, but you're right."

"I'll start on this floor. You get to an elevator and get the floors underneath us."

"Got it."

He cups my cheek. "Just don't get yourself killed, okay?"

"I won't." I start to go, but Jake reaches out and grabs my wrist.

"Just one more thing, Princess." He pulls me into a long, desperate kiss. When he finally breaks it, he presses his forehead to mine. "...Be safe."

"You too, Top Gun."

He plants a last kiss on my forehead, and then jogs down the hall before either of us can lose our will. Even as he goes, I have to fight the urge to call him back, to beg him to stay with me. Only the thought of the others being taken by surprise gives me the courage to go on alone. I turn the other way, staying flush against the wall.

The hall way I'm standing in intersects with another. I peer around. Two watchers, a male and female, are searching rooms.

"Lash kanaa," the woman mutters.

"Duu germund nii," the man replies.

I have to get to the other side of the intersection, but that means crossing the vulnerable open space where the two halls meet. I swallow, pressing up against the corner, watching for my opportunity. Every muscle in my body quivers. I'm reminded of the feeling I'd get at competitions, just before the buzzer sounded and I mounted the beam. The more nervous I was, the harder it would be to keep my balance, so my coach taught me to train my parasympathetic nervous system to respond to a cue. A word or phrase, whispered or mentally repeated while I inhaled and exhaled, would slow my heartrate and unlock my muscles. The technique has helped me before competitions, performances, and exams. I pray it helps me now. I draw in my breath.

"...Apples..." I whisper. "...Apples...apples..."

I feel my heartbeat settle. The male Watcher turns his back.

 _Apples...apples..._

My limbs slowly stop trembling. The female watcher joins her companion, turning her back on me. I dart across the gap, ducking behind the far corner, my steps light as a cat's. _Thank you, Coach Oliver!_

I peer back around the corner, just to be sure. Neither of the Watchers seem to have noticed me. They're further down the hall now and moving away from me. Piece of cake. I'm like a ghost. I turn to continue my journey, and find myself face to face with a blue figure. I gasp and stumble backwards, just barely managing to smother a scream with my hands.

"I apologize for frightening you, Alodia," Iris says.

"Ha, yo, you should see your face right now," Raj chuckles. He's holding a box of Cap'n Crunch, digging the stuff out in handfuls and cramming it into his mouth.

"What are you guys doing?!" I hiss.

"Talkin' 'bout life and stuff, you know." He pauses, tipping his head. "Wait, are we whispering? Should I be whispering?"

I fill them in on what's happening, giving them the short version. I leave out the part about Jake dying and the necklace.

"They're here?!" To his credit, Raj manages to whisper. "In the resort?! Oh crap, oh crap!"

"This is an unfortunate development," Iris agrees. Although she doesn't exactly whisper, she does seem to have lowered the volume of her voice, like the volume on a radio or television. "This is an unfortunate development. A pity. I had quite enjoyed my brief time knowing Raj."

"What matters now is warning the others before they get grabbed. The Watchers have to search every room, so we have the advantage. If we hurry, we'll beat them. Come on."

The three of us advance quietly down the halls toward the elevator. Something on the wall glints in the light, catching my eye. I turn sharply back to it, needing to assure myself that it's nothing dangerous.

It's a pirate cutlass, mounted in a sturdy frame next to a matching scabbard. Not immediately dangerous, though it certainly could be in the Watchers' hands. I stare at it for a moment. It almost seems to be...sparkling. With some otherworldly sort of energy...

"Noice!" Raj says behind me. "That's a dope-ass _Pirates of the Caribbean_ sword they got. Kudos to the decorator."

"A weapon like that would come in handy in a seige situation," Iris points out.

I reach up and pull the sword down from the wall. The blade seems to hum in my hands.

"Sooooooo cool," Raj declares. "That's such a good replica!"

"That is not a replica. Analysis indicates authentic specimen, circa 1693 A.D."

"What?!" I gasp. "But it looks brand new!"

"Is it sharp?"

I experimentally swing the blade at a small tapesty that hangs on the wall behind me. With scarcely a sound, it's cleaved in two.

"Yeah. It's sharp."

Raj blinks. "Uh, one: super sweet. Two: maybe be careful with that thing?"

"Sure thing."

My palm starts to tingle. I look down at the sword. My world flashes white in a way that almost feels familiar. When it clears, I'm standing in a gold mine, like the one Quinn and I went through at the shelter. I gasp and fall back, tightening my grip on the sword. I look down at the weapon in my hand. Except that it is no longer my own hand that holds it. It is the hairy, gnarled hand of an old man, flecked with liver spots. I search for myself, and find myself a passenger in someone else's mind, just as I was when I dreamt of being in Raj's body.

The vessel and I both hear screaming. There is a violent brawl underway all around him. On one side are a collection of ragged pirates, their bearded faces bloody, weilding swords and pistols. On the other are the Watchers.

"Kashta mishram nara!"

"Zhell! Per lok!"

Blades sing in the firelight, clashing and swinging. Men scream and howl in agony. One pirate lies on the ground at my vessel's feet, his chest a bloody ruin. He looks up at me, eyes pleading.

"Captain...help us..."

My vessel rushes to the man's side. Then pain slices through my chest. I look down. There is an arrow sprouting from his chest. And I feel his pain like my own. Another arrow pierces the flesh beside the first. And then another. We crumple against the mine wall, gasping. Every breath hurts. A Watcher looms over us, a woman in the mask of a ram. She raises a club and brings it down hard on our face. I feel the sword tumbling out of our hand...

I jerk out of his body with a gasp, staggering back in my own. Raj steadies me with an arm around my shoulders.

"You okay, Alodia? You just spaced out big time."

"I...think I just found out what happened to the pirates who landed here. ...It wasn't good."

"I detected a surge of an unidentified energy just now. It appeared to be emanating from Alodia."

"I wanna know all about that later, Iris. Right now, we need to deal with the Watchers, unless we want to end up as dead as the guy who used to wield this sword."

I grab the scabbard from the wall and slip the sword inside. We continue down the hall until we reach the next intersection. We freeze upon hearing a familiar sound...a low, guttural purr...

We press ourselves against the wall. I peer around the corner. There is a pair of Watchers searching rooms. And prowling beside them is the sabertooth tiger.

"It appears the intruders have brought a hunting beast."

"You're telling me that the sabertooth is the plant people's pet?!"

The sabertooth suddenly perks up, sniffing the air. The Watcher handlers notice.

"Yrit tranaa!"

"Lok, lok!"

"He smells something!" I whisper.

"It's my Citrus Krush!" Raj whispers back.

"Citrus Krush? I thought you were eating Cap'n Crunch?"

"Not my cereal, man! That's the strain of _medicinal substance_ I was smoking tonight!"

"...Wait, you're high right now? That's...actually impressive. I couldn't even tell." Raj's eyes flick from me to Iris to the tiger to his cereal...and then around the circle again. "...Okay, now I can kinda tell."

"I'll lead the cat the other way," he says suddenly. "Oughta give you guys some time."

"What?! No way!"

"Raj, are you certain?" Iris asks.

He grins. "Never been more sure of anything in my life. Maybe that's not saying much, though. Go now!"

He turns and runs back the other way before I can protest further. Iris and I press forward. The sabertooth prowls out, sniffing around where we were just standing. Then, it turns and pads off in Raj's direction, never even turning to see us.

"My goodness. My projections of his bravery were far outside the margin of error."

"People will surprise you," I say softly. "Come on, Iris. Let's do what he said."

We make it to the elevator and slip inside. I punch the button and the elevator whisks us down four floors.

"Grace's room is on this floor," I say. "I'll get her. Meanwhile, you scout the Watchers' positions."

"Excellent idea. Right away."

Iris' hologram winks out, and her drone flutters off. I make it to Grace's room unmolested and rap softly on the door.

"Grace? It's Alodia. I need to-" The door opens and cuts me off. Aleister stands in front of me with his shirt untucked. I blink. "Aleister?"

"I...we...nothing! We were just talking!" He blushes furiously and I can't help but wonder if he even notices my tousled hair or the faint smell of sex clinging to me.

"Alodia?" Grace comes up behind him. "What's happening?"

I slip into the room and shut the door. I explain the situation as quickly as possible. Their expressions crumble. Trembling, Grace presses close to Aleister.

"All that work barricading..." Aleister moans. "Setting traps in the shops and the kitchen...all for naught. They still caught us unprepared."

"I know we're on the ropes here, but we gotta focus. We have to get everyone together, somewhere safe."

"What about that security center hidden behind the game room? That'd be safe."

"Great idea, Grace. Only problem is, some of our friends' rooms are in the other wing of the tower. Gotta go across the lobby to get over there." I look at them. "You two go straight to the security center and tell everyone you find. We left the door to the hidden room propped, and it opens from the inside, so just shut yourselves in and let the rest of us in when we get there. I'll go get everyone from the other wing."

"Don't be foolish, Alodia," Aleister says flatly. "You, Grace, and I are by far the lives most worth saving here. It's positively asinine to risk yourself for them, and I am sure they would agree."

"Aleister!" Grace cries. "We're not leaving anyone behind!"

"Absolutely not!" I agree. "...Though I am weirdly flattered that you think I'd be worth saving."

"Well, you've proven yourself worth the air you breathe, unlike most. Don't let it go to your head."

"I won't. ...Be careful, you two."

I open the door slowly, checking to see that the coast is clear.

"Hey, um...Alodia?" I turn to see Grace beside me. "Could I ask you a really big favor?"

"What is it?"

She hands me a folded piece of paper. "If something happens to me tonight...could you give that note to my mom? There's...a lot I wanted to tell her."

"Grace...you can tell her yourself when we get out of here. I promise."

"Please. I'm asking you, Alodia."

I take the note and slip it into my pocket. "Okay. I'll make sure she reads it."

As Grace and Aleister head for the security center, I take the elevator down to the lobby. The doors open.

"Fi lonshan'craa!"

"Crap!" I yelp before I can stop myself.

A small band of Watchers spots me from across the lobby and races towards me with impossible speed.

"Allie!" Diego suddenly appears in front of me, grabbing my hand and yanking me out of the elevator. "This way!"

"We're not gonna be able to shake these guys, Diego!" My mind races and hits on something. "The traps! Aleister said there were traps set in the shops and the kitchen! We have to lead them there!"

Diego pulls me into the stairwell. We scramble up the stairs to the shopping level on the second floor, darting by kiosks, convenience stores, and gift shops.

"There!" Diego points to a high-fashion boutique, where I can clearly see Aleister's pyramid of paint-filled balloons. We dart behind it, each picking up a squishy balloon. Diego smiles weakly at me. "Hope your aim's good."

"Sure wish Sean were here right now," I reply grimly.

As the Watchers rumble into the boutique, we release our balloons, not even stopping to see where they land before grabbing more and hurling them at the intruders. The balloons burst as they land, splattering paint everywhere. At least a few land squarely in the Watchers' faces. They howl with rage, frantically scrubbing the paint from their eyes.

"Okay, time to keep moving!" Diego grabs my hand again and we take off for another stairwell. The Watchers who avoided our assault are in hot pursuit. "We've got stragglers! Where next?!"

"The kitchen!"

We stumble up to the fourth floor, weaving through the restaurant to the kitchen, searching for the trap our friends planted.

"That's it!" I cry, pointing to the chrome oxygen tank resting horizontally on a serving cart.

"What the hell are we supposed to do with that?!"

"Stay behind me!"

The Watchers are hot on our trail and they storm into the kitchen.

"Gana shanlenzi!"

"Dima nij shala!"

"Allie! We've got incoming!"

"No. _They've_ got incoming!"

I grab the meat tenderizing hammer resting beside the tank and slam it down on the valve at the back. It snaps off, releasing the built up pressure in a smoky plume. The tank rockets off the cart like a missile, crashing into the Watchers with spectacular force.

"Ha! Bullseye! That oughta buy us some time!"

"Come on! Back to the lobby! We have to get everyone out of the other tower!"

We barrel down the stairs and into the lobby, taking off towards the other side. Up ahead, there are strange, rippling reflections on the floor. As I get closer, I realize it's been covered in water.

"It's Lila's trap!" I grab Diego's arm, stopping him short of the puddle where a pair of thick electrical cables is resting. "Come on! This way!"

I follow the path of the cables over to a hiding spot where Lila has her hand on an electrical switch.

"Alodia!" Lila calls. "Diego! Cross it quickly!"

We nod and sprint across the flooded section of the lobby. We can hear the splashing of our pursuers' feet behind us. We hit the dry floor.

"We're clear, Lila!'

"Hope this doesn't come as a shock!" she laughs as she throws the switch. Diego and I clutch each other, turning away as the water behind us crackles with electricity. We hear the Watchers scream. I dare to look back. The last of our pursuers have fallen back, blocked from following us by the electrified moat. They don't appear to have taken any permanent damage, but they pace angrily beside it, clearly not keen to attempt a crossing again. They flee, no doubt searching for another way around.

"...Thanks for waiting," I manage to gasp.

"Seriously, remind me never to get on your bad side," Diego deadpans.

"No sweat!" Lila says cheerfully. "Did you like my one-liner? I spent all day on it!"

Diego and I exchange glances.

"...Yeah," he says. "It was...great."

I become aware of an acrid smell.

"...Is something burning?"

"Uh oh..." Lila points. "Over there. Behind the conceirge desk."

I follow her finger, to where a perfect square in the wall has caught fire, the wallpaper curling in the heat.

"What the hell?" Diego mutters.

"There must have been something in the wall that the wires were powering. Shorting it out started the fire."

"But what is it?" Lila wonders.

I grab the fire extinguisher from the wall behind the desk and quickly put out the flames. When the fog clears, I can't make out any electrical device. But in a hidden compartment in the wall, there rests a charred wooden box with an engraving on the top.

"...What's this?"

Diego pulls it out carefully, reading the engraving on the top. " 'Rourke Diaries, La Huerta, 1980'."

"Oh, I'm sure it's nothing," Lila says quickly. We probably want to leave that right there, huh? You know, privacy and all."

"Rourke has hidden cameras all over this hotel," Diego says flatly. "Not really feeling all that concerned about _his_ privacy. What about you, Allie? Wanna find out what Rourke was up to when he first came here?"

"I'm with you, Diego. Besides, any information we can get may help us survive long enough to get home."

"Aah, wait!" Lila protests.

Diego lifts the lid on the box and pulls out four pages of yellowed paper, encrusted with sea salt around their edges. Each page is blanketed in elegant, flowing script. I read over his shoulder.

1980 June 3

Alas, I am shipwrecked. My dear vessel dashed upon the rocks. A sudden squall of ferocious lightning the color of flames forced me aground this damned rock.

Unbridled, uninhabited, unworthy of my presence, let alone my grave. I will not perish here alone, forgotten in the wild, far from my beloved. Furthermore, the boys at the regatta would have quite a chuckle if I succumbed in such untoward fashion. I simply cannot abide that.

1980 June 11

A childhood hunting big game with my father at last pays its dues. Repair to my sailboat is impossible, but I've reconquered fire, shelter, and weaponry in the name of mankind. It grows ever more important to chronicle my experiences here, for they seem stranger by the day. My eyes betray me, offering impossible visions or great beasts of antiquity. Even the constellations play tricks. I see Aquila, Serpens, Hydra, yet Orion and Taurus hide from me. I must write to maintain my wits. For a man's wits are all he has to confront the great evils of nature.

1980 June 15

A curse remade into blessing by sheer force of will. That is what this island will be for me. A vision came, bearing witness to this refuge's true potential deep within its volcanic core, as if a voice from God.

But God spoke in my voice, because here I shall be God.

1980 June 30

Harnessing the island, I have achieved the impossible. My ship is repaired, and I venture home to my beloved. But I will return. And when I do, I will tame this power to make and unmake mountains and men, who both rise and fall under the same awesome celestial forces. This island will be my legacy. It will be my destiny.

Everret Aleister Rourke

Caribbean Sea

"Looks like Rourke shipwrecked here almost fourty years ago."

"Of course," Lila says. "That's no secret."

"...But I don't think he was telling people what he found."

"What power is he talking about?" Diego wonders.

"He noticed the weird constellations, too. I wonder what he stars have to do with all this..."

Noises from the hall make us jump. The Watchers have nearly found their way around Lila's trap.

"We have to hurry!" Lila says. "Come on, follow me!"

She leads us into the other wing of the tower. We duck up the stairs and onto the third floor, where we run into Craig and Michelle.

"What's going on, Alodia?" Craig asks

"We keep hearing all this noise!" Michelle adds.

"Come with us," I gasp. My legs are burning with exertion, but the adreneline has not worn off yet. "I'll explain on the way."

The five of us make it back to the game room and pound on the secret door. "Guys, it's us! Alodia, Diego, Lila, Craig, and Michelle!"

The door opens and we all tumble in, sealing ourselves in. Everybody else is waiting inside. We all made it. A flurry of hugging follows. I throw myself into Jake's arms, and he kisses my hair.

"You okay?" he asks, stroking the back of my head.

"I'm fine. I'm okay. You?"

"Yeah...doin' a bit better now than two minutes ago."

He sets me down. Zahra looks over at me.

"You're alive," she observes flatly. "Nice."

I grin. "You're not gonna get sappy on me, are you?"

"No way! I'm just..." She scowls. "I'll have you know I was _this_ close to bailing on the lot of you! Don't make me regret not going 'Every Woman For Herself.'"

Murphy hops up onto my shoulder, lapping at my face with a chilly tongue. I scratch his neck.

"Missed you, too, fella."

"Yo, Alodia!" Craig exclaims, noting the cutlass tucked into my belt. "Is that a straight-up pirate sword? Bad. Ass."

"That will come in handy," Estela remarks.

"Indeed," Lila agrees. "I'm guessing you could decapitate an opponent in two, maybe three chops!"

"Alodia," Iris chimes. "I completed your assignment. Downloading scouting report."

Numbers and blueprints start to appear on the room's monitors.

"Nice work," Jake says. "This oughta help us figure out a way outta here."

Pounding on the sealed doorway silences everyone. There are voices outside, shouting in the Watchers' language.

"...Will it help us figure a way past that?" Michelle murmurs.

"What are we supposed to do?" Quinn asks. "We're completely cornered in here."

"There's only one thing we can do," I say grimly. "Now that we're all together, we regroup...and fight our way out."

"Fight?!" Craig cries. "With what?!"

"And to where?" Grace adds.

Jake is studying the blueprints on the computer screen.

"Not too many of the Watchers got in," he remarks thoughtfully, "thanks to locking down the resort and sealing off that secret entrance. So we won't have to face too many. And that gives us time."

"Time for what, pray tell?" Aleister sneers.

Jake points to a spot on the blueprint. "I was rummaging around here earlier this week. They've got a ton of parasailing gear in storage."

"Um...is he saying what I think he's saying?" Grace asks nervously.

"I think he's saying we get the parasailing chutes...and jump off the roof."

"That's the long and short of it, Princess," Jake confirms.

"Where 'long' is our fall and 'short' is our remaining lifespan," Aleister mutters.

"Hell no!" Craig cries. "Have you lost your damn mind?!"

"Chill, Craig!" Raj says firmly. "I don't see you coming up with any better ideas!"

I can feel the panic growing in the small room, taking hold. Everyone begins shouting at once.

"No way I'm going out there! I'll just stay here!"

"This only works if we stick together! We're putting our lives in each other's hands!"

"Yeah, that's gonna be a hard pass!"

I wave my arms, trying to get their attention. "Guys, please! Guys! Hey!"

A piercing whistle startles everyone into silence. We all look at Michelle as she takes her fingers out of her mouth. She puts her hands on her hips, glaring at the group.

"Everyone shut up! Alodia is trying to speak, and I for one would like to listen, since she seems to be the only person here with her head screwed on straight!" When no one speaks, she nods at me. "Go ahead, Alodia."

"Uh...thank you, Michelle." I shake my head, wondering briefly when the hell that woman stopped hating me. I turn to the others. "Okay, the worst thing we could do would be to go out there when we're scared and bickering. It's simple. Right now, we have a choice."

"How exactly do we have any choice at all?!" Aleister snaps.

I look him hard in the eye. "You can choose to hold back. You can choose to hesitate. To be afraid. Or you can choose to face these odds head-on and give it your all, whatever comes be damned!"

They all look at me for a moment. Then Craig nods.

"All right. I'm in. To the very end."

"Let's do this," Grace agrees.

"All right, everyone get ready," Jake says. "I'm gonna open the door on three. When I do, full speed ahead, got it?"

He makes his way to the door. I follow him to the front of the group, ready to charge out first. As I get myself on the balls of my feet, I feel a hand on my arm.

"...Hey, Allie," Diego says softly, "I just wanna say before it all goes down...Thank you. For everything."

"What do you mean?"

"It probably sounds dumb, but I feel like you made my life special. Extraordinary. Maybe I was always cut out to be the sidekick, but if so, then I'm glad I was your sidekick. Because honestly, you've been my hero. So even if I lose you right now, I just wanna say thanks."

I grab my best friend and pull him into a tight hug. "You're not gonna lose me, Diego," I whisper. "That's a promise."

"Places, people!" Jake calls. I get up beside him, and he smiles down at me. "Determined to get out first, huh?"

I smirk a little. "...Will you be behind me?"

"I'd follow you into battle any day, Princess." He takes a deep breath. "Okay! Here we go! One...two... _THREE!"_

Jake unseals the hatch. Tightening my grip on my cutlass, I unleash a wild battle cry and storm out with my friends behind me, ready to face the enemy.

...Except that the room beyond the door is empty.


	16. Here's To Adventure

Everyone screeches to a halt, our eyes darting over the room, searching for any sign of the Watchers we heard outside only moments ago. No one believes they're gone. They wouldn't just leave. We're all expecting an ambush. Then, Estela looks at the ceiling.

"...They're above us," she whispers.

Having been spotted, the Watchers drop from the ceiling.

"Lakshi naa!"

"Shumati bwasun!"

All hell breaks loose. We go for the Watchers, and they go for us. I swing wildly with my cutlass, but one of the Watchers gets me from behind, trapping me in a headlock. He pulls his arm tight against my throat, cutting off my oxygen. I struggle, trying to push his arm off my trachea, trying to make enough space between his antecubital and my throat that I can breathe even a little. I start to feel dizzy. The Watcher growls in my ear.

"Raami kan jit et— _kff!_ " A fist clocks him square in the face, and he staggers back, stumbling over the pool table. I sink to my knees, gulping air.

"Yeah!" Craig yells. "There's more where that came from! All you can eat!"

I grin shakily at him. "Thanks."

"For sure," he says, grinning back and helping me to my feet. "Ain't nobody messin' with my clique."

"Keep pushing forward!" Sean yells. "We can cut through the ballroom!"

We scramble after him, into the ball room, only to find ourselves face to face with at least a dozen muscular Watchers. They are lead by the unmasked one who swung into my bedroom. The one who speaks inside my mind.

"...Surround them," he growls at his warriors. "Fan out."

The Watchers act on command, spreading out and flanking our group.

"Stay close people!" Sean calls. "Watch each others' backs!"

"Alodia, get down!"

I turn at Michelle's cry, just in time to see a large rope net launching at me. Michelle tries to tackle me out of the way, but only succeeds in getting us both tangled beneath the web of tough woven vines.

"Augh, this is what I get for trying to help you!" she complains.

"Hold still, I can get us out of here!"

Even tangled up with Michelle, with some wiggling, I manage to turn the cutlass against the vines.

"Oh my god, if you cut my hair, you are dead!"

"Just a little further..." I give the cutlass a push. It goes through the vines like a hot knife through butter. I push out of the net and turn back to help Michelle to her feet.

"Whew! Good thing I was here to save your ass," she says with a wry grin.

I grin back. "Yeah, thanks for tha-"

Michelle cuts me off with a cry as an arrow grazes her arm.

"Michelle!"

She clutches the wound, looking up at me with alarm. "I can't move my arm!"

"It's a paralytic!" Grace cries. "I think they mean to take us alive!"

"Alodia, look out!"

I whip around. I can't tell who just called out. Before I register the archer taking aim at me, she's loosed her arrow. I brace myself.

 _Clnnnnng!_ A sound like a gong goes off in front of me as Raj deflects the arrow with a frying pan.

"Fifteen-love, chump!"

"Raj, is that...the frying pan with the symbol from the kitchen? You took it with you?"

"...I felt like I was supposed to. Good thing I did."

Something cold rushes past my ankle. Murphy is firing bolts of ice at the agile Watchers, one after another after another, but I can see him slowing down. He stands on quivering paws, his head dropping with exhaustion.

"Murphy!" I cry. "Hang in there, buddy!"

"He's getting weaker!" Quinn cries.

"I think he's used up too much water!" Grace shouts, rolling away from an arrow. "We need to get him more!"

I look around frantically. On impulse, I run to the wall and yank the fire alarm. Immediately, the deafening shriek of an alarm fills the ballroom. Aleister moans, clutching his ears, as do most of the Watchers.

"Why in damnation would you-"

"Look!"

Overhead, the sprinkler system activates, filling the ballroom with pouring water. Murphy lifts his head to the stream. He starts to shimmer with energy. Soon, he's crystalizing the spray from the sprinklers and hurling massive balls of ice at the stunned Watchers. One gets plowed over and slammed into a wall.

"Quick thinking, Alodia!" Quinn says. "And even better shooting, Murphy!"

Diego cries out, a sound that makes me whip around. In the chaos, he's been thrown to the floor. The unmasked Watcher is moving towards him. I hurtle towards them and plant myself firmly between them, brandishing my cutlass at the Watcher.

"No!" I growl.

"Why do you fight your destiny?" he asks coldly.

"Because _I_ decide what it will be."

Like lightning, he charges. I move to raise my cutlass, but a kick sends it flying from my hand. I watch it clatter on the floor twenty feet away and feel my heart drop into my stomach. I rip the knife from the sheath at my shoulder, but the Watcher bats that away, too. He slows his advance. It's an offer. A chance for me to surrender. I'm unarmed, and at a clear disadvantage. Size-wise, I'm a chihuahua against a pitbull...Murphy against the sabertooth tiger. I draw in a deep breath.

"Apples," I say aloud. "Apples." I glare at him, and send a thought his direction, one I'm sure he can hear. _Come at me._ Furious, he attacks.

Estela's training kicks in surprisingly quickly. He's fast like a freak, but I use his size against him, ducking, twisting, bobbing, weaving. The grace, agility, and balace I've carefully cultivated with years of gymnastics and dance keep me on the balls of my feet and well out of the way of his fists and feet. The Watcher starts to grow frustrated. I'm a fly buzzing around his head now, and he can't swat me. He gets tired. He gets sloppy. And then an over-eager left hook leaves his stomach exposed. I throw my whole weight behind the punch.

My fist connects. It's like punching concrete, but he staggers back, stunned. He doesn't see that Diego's circled behind him with a folding chair.

"Hey, asshole! Take a seat!" Diego brings the chair down over the Watcher's head. He crumples under the blow and slumps to the floor, unconscious.

I laugh, throwing myself at my friend. "Diego! That was awesome!"

He lifts me up and spins me. "So were your moves! When did you become a superhero?"

"Don't stop now, you two!" Jake yells, weilding a bottle of wine at the Watchers like a club.

Raj and Grace make a break for the doors.

"Come on!" Grace cries. "Hurry!"

They race out of the ballroom. The rest of us charge after them, but another group of Watchers blocks our path.

"Dammit!" Jake moans. "More of 'em!"

Way more. Too many. We're being beaten back. Sean, Craig, Jake, and Estela try to lead us through, but even they can't make it through the onslaught.

"It's no use!" Craig cries, throwing his shoulder into a Watcher. "These guys are crazy strong! We can't shake 'em off!"

Archers fall back just enough to loose their paralytic arrows. Two arrows hit Michelle and Quinn, both square in the chest. I scream, expecting them to drop dead on the spot, but the arrows' rounded heads bounce off. Still, their legs fold under them, and they both crumple.

"I...can't move...!" Quinn whimpers.

"The paralytic!" Michelle grunts.

"We won't hold out much longer!" I cry. "We've gotta do something!"

"To hell with _this!_ " Jake snarls. He reaches into the back of his waistband and pulls out the strange gun from the Observatory.

"I thought you said we shouldn't play with that!" I protest. "We have no idea what it does!"

"Well, friends, I guess it's time to find out." He takes aim and pulls the trigger.

With a flash of white light, a person-sized bubble erupts from the tip of the gun and launches across the room, expanding as it goes. As it whips past, I swear I can see an entire world refracted through it. The Watchers freeze in their panic. Two of them are caught inside the bubble and vanish instantly. The bubble pops with another blinding flash.

For a moment, no one, not Watcher or human, can do anything. No one moves.

"Holy shit..." Jake whispers.

The Watchers recover and attempt to take advantage of Jake's shock, but he's faster. He aims and fires again. Another flash, another bubble, and four more Watchers vanish. The unmasked one barely dives out of the way in time. The others scatter for cover.

"Everyone move!" Sean cries. "Help Quinn and Michelle!"

Craig lifts Michelle in his arms while Sean and Jake brace Quinn on either side. Together, we barely manage to make it out of the ballroom and block the doors behind us.

Back in the halls, we take a moment to catch our breath. I kneel beside Quinn as Jake and Sean let her down.

"You okay?"

"The feeling...is coming...back into my legs," she says weakly. Her breath comes out in hard puffs. "I...think I can manage...on my own..."

"I can walk again, too," Michelle mutters. "Thanks for asking."

Craig puts his hands on his knees, panting. "...What the hell is that gun?"

"For a second there, I thought I saw another world through the bubble," Estela says.

"It looked like the ballroom," Quinn agrees. "But...not quite. I didn't see any people, so it wasn't a mirror..."

"It's like the gun was shooting some kind of portal," I add.

Iris, her drone hovering nearby, flickers to life. "Scanning...My information is dated, but I have some prototype schematics for a similar weapon. It is designated a Tachyon Accelerator. Its objective is to move physical objects forward in time."

"Are you saying we sent those Watchers into the future?" I ask incredulously.

"Okay," Jake sighs. "So it's a time travel gun. Sure. Why the hell not?"

Aleister, slumped against a wall, suddenly leaps to his feet, looking around in a panic. "Grace? Grace! Has anyone seen her?!"

"We lost Raj, too!" Quinn cries.

"Dammit!" Sean runs to the railing of the atrium. I follow him, looking out across the central chasm, searching for any signs of our missing classmates.

"There!" I shout, pointing to a dark figure in an orange sweater. "It's Grace! They have her! They're headed into the lounge on the thirteenth floor!"

"There's Raj!" Sean says. "He's headed into the restaurant on the fifteenth, Watchers hot on his tail! He'll be cornered in there!"

"No way we have time to save them," Jake mutters grimly.

"We have to! We can't just do nothing!" Aleister cries. "We can't just let the Watchers have them!"

"Aleister's right!" I say firmly, my eyes daring anyone to argue. "We're not leaving anyone behind if there's even a snowball's chance in hell! Not on my watch!"

"So what do we do?" Diego asks.

"Split up. Aleister, Sean, Jake, Diego, come with me. We're going after Grace. The rest of you get to Raj."

"Oh, thank heavens!" Aleister grabs my face and kisses my forehead. "Come on! No time to lose!"

We hurry up the stairs, splitting off at the thirteenth floor. My group races towards the lounge, where we find Grace struggling with a lone Watcher as he drags her towards an open window. He turns as we rush in, growling.

"Alaniir fai eunicka!"

Sean steps forward to fight, but Aleister stops him with a hand on his chest. Eyes narrow, Aleister strides towards the Watcher, who tosses Grace aside and squares off. In one graceful motion, Aleister swipes up an iron poker from the fireplace and smashes it into the Watcher's kneecap without breaking his gait. The Watcher staggers in surprise and pain. He lunges, but Aleister pirouettes out of reach, whipping the iron into the blue-skinned warrior's wrist.

"...Did anyone know he could do that?" I murmur to the others.

With a final balletic spin, he brings the poker down on the Watcher's skull. He slumps to the floor, unconscious. Dropping the poker, he hurries to Grace's side, helping her carefully to her feet.

"Are you all right?"

"Aleister..."

He seems to notice the rest of us staring at him.

"What? I was among the top five junior fencers in England."

"Uhhhh, that _wasn't_ fencing," Diego deadpans.

"Very well. Perhaps I just wanted to kick his arse." He turns back to Grace, gently fingering a dark bruise on her cheek. She smiles.

"You...saved me..."

"Of course I saved you! Frankly, I'm insulted you could imagine otherwise! I-"

"Calm down, Malfoy. She's just thanking you."

"Oh. Well, in that case, you are quite welcome."

Any further conversation is cut short by the sound of screaming from across the atrium.

"It's Raj and the others! We have to help them!"

"They had him cornered," Sean says grimly. "We have to hurry."

We bolt from the lounge and back into the stairwell, bounding up the next two flights of stairs to the restaurant. At least six Watchers have pursued Raj. The others are managing to distract four of them, but two have boxed Raj into a corner. They grab him, trying to pin him down.

"Hesh lafant!"

"No!" Raj protests. "Bad! Bad! Hands off! No touchie!"

"Who do we go after first?" I ask. Iris flickers to life beside me.

"Alodia. I may have a solution." Before I can say anything, she floats forward. Before my eyes, her hologram distorts, morphing into a monstrous, hideous creature. Suddenly, the giant crab we faced on the mountain is in the restaurant with us, snapping its claws. It lets out a terrible, blood-curdling howl. The six Watchers shout in alarm and trip over each other in their haste to escape. Noticing the thing that scared them off, Raj screams and scrambles to follow.

"Raj!" Quinn and I catch him before he makes it too far. "You're okay! It's just us!"

Raj stops and looks back at the holocrab just as it morphs back into Iris.

"I frightened you. My apologies."

"Woah! You can like...change your looks and stuff?"

"I can alter my appearance as desired," Iris confirms. "Do you not like my appearance?"

"What?" Raj balks. "No! I love it! I mean—it's cool."

"All right, everyone's accounted for!" Jake says triumphantly. "Damn good work! Now let's hightail it outta here in style!"

We make our way back to the atrium, where Craig suddenly stops, looking down toward the lobby.

"Uh, guys?"

I follow his gaze, feeling my heart sink as at least two dozen more Watchers stream into the hotel. Spotting us, they point, shouting orders.

"Oh, my!" Lila gasps. "There are so many!"

Jake pushes me onward. "Go, go! We've gotta grab the parasailing gear! It's in storage on this floor!"

He leads us to the storage locker and yanks it open. We grab all the parasailing gear we can find and cram into the elevator to take us the rest of the way to the rooftop. In less than a minute, we tumble out.

"Block the elevator door!" I shout. "Don't let it go back down for them!"

Aleister and Lila drag garden furniture over to prop the elevator door open. I join Jake, who is counting off the parachutes. His face falls.

"...Crap..."

"Jake...Oh, God, don't tell me..."

"...We don't have enough. Not for everyone."

"...What does that mean?" Quinn asks, her voice small.

"It means we have to leave some of us behind," Estela says softly.

"Oh, no..."

Zahra cries out from the edge of the rooftop. "Yeah, so they're climbing up the goddamn tower walls! They're gonna be here any minute!"

But no one moves. We all stand paralyzed, waiting for someone to tell us what to do next. Then Sean lifts up a pack and puts it in my arms.

"You take one, Alodia. I'll stay back."

"Me too," Craig volunteers.

"Shut up, you idiots!" Jake growls. "Now's not the time to be noble!"

"Jake," Sean says softly. "It's exactly the time."

"...Goddammit. Fine. I'm staying back, too."

"No, no, no!" I shout, exasperated. "For fuck's sake, no one's getting left behind! We're all each other has on this island! We're all we can count on! We're not going to abandon each other now!"

"Yeah!" Diego says. "All for one and one for all!"

The others exchange glances.

"All right, peeps," Craig says. "Guess it's ride together or die together."

"If possible, I recommend the former," Aleister replies.

"Well, we're running out of time for a miracle!" Zahra cries. "They're almost here!"

"You have approximately sixty seconds to escape," Iris chimes.

Diego moans. "Man, I do not wanna go out like this. I just wanna close my eyes and wake up when it's all over."

"...Wake up when it's all over..." I murmur. "Oh, my God! That's it!"

"What's it?" I reach behind Jake and pull the time gun from his waistband.

"We use this!"

"It won't work, Alodia," Sean protests. "There are too many. You can't shoot them all quickly enough."

I grin. "Who said anything about shooting them?"

"What are you...Ohhhh..." Estela's face lights up with understanding.

"Hold up! You're talking about going through a portal ourselves?"

"We've got no idea where it would send us! Or when!"

"Michelle is correct," Iris says. "I have no data suggesting where the portal would lead, or if you'd even survive. Thirty seconds."

"But Alodia's right. It's the only way we all get out of here together."

Jake wraps his arms around my waist from behind. I put an arm around Diego, pulling him firmly to my side. The others press in around me as I aim the gun at my feet. Murphy huddles between my ankles, whining.

"Everyone think positive!" Lila calls. "Envision your goals!"

"I'm just gonna say it!" Raj declares. "I love you guys!"

"Screw it!" Michelle says. "I love you all too!"

"No matter what happens," Craig adds, "this was a dope-ass vacation, y'all."

"Please, oh please don't let me die in a group hug," Zahra mutters.

"Aleister?" Grace whimpers. "I'm scared..."

"I'm here, Grace. Just hold onto me."

"Hang on a second, Princess." Jake turns my face towards him and captures my mouth in a kiss. "All right. I can die happy now."

"Five seconds remaining," Iris chimes.

Sean meets my eyes and nods. "Do it, Alodia."

"Hang on, everyone!"

Diego grins weakly at me. "Here's to adventure, eh, Allie?"

I smile back. "Here's to adventure."

I squeeze the trigger. The bubble forms around my legs, instantly expanding to swallow my friends. But as it envelopes me, I suddenly feel Diego pulled away from me. He cries out. I react on instinct, dropping the gun and grabbing his wrists. My legs fly backwards out from under me, and Diego and I are suddenly suspended in air, clinging to each others' wrists, being pulled in opposite directions.

"Diego!"

I look past him. A rope of vines, weighted at the end with a rock, has wrapped around his legs. The Watcher leader is on the other end. He's made it to the rooftop, and he's trying to reel Diego out. The portal holds me fast, drawing me in.

"Allie!"

"Diego! Hold on!"

I hear Estela's voice. "What's happenin-" She's cut off as the portal swallows her. One by one, my friends vanish into the void until only Diego and I are left. We're the rope in a tug-of-war between the Watchers and the portal. ...And the Watchers are winning.

"They're too strong!"

"Diego, just don't let go!"

"They'll just take you with me!"

He meets my eyes. And in that single, terrible moment, I realize what he is going to do.

"No..." I whisper. "Diego, no...don't do it..."

He looks at me with heartbreak in his eyes. His grip loosens, just a little at first. A warning. I tighten my own grip, whimpering in wordless protest.

"...Goodbye, Allie. I love you."

"No! _No!_ " But he's already let go. My hands paw helplessly at the air in front of me as the void finally swallows me, leaving my best friend behind. _"DIEEEGOOOOOOOOOO!"_

Then even my own wild scream of anguish is swallowed by the blinding, cleansing light. It seeps into me, becoming one with me, down to the marrow of my bones, down to my soul. It burns and soothes, purges and rebuilds, and for a moment, I feel nothing. Then it recedes. I'm still on the rooftop, exactly where I had stood. Disoriented and unsteady, my friends surround me. ...All but one. ...All but the one who matters most. The agony returns in a terrible wave. I fall to my knees.

"The light..." Michelle whispers. "It's gone..."

"So are the Watchers." Sean observes. "We made it through the portal."

"Wait...Alodia...where's Diego?"

...It seems strange to me that Craig should be the first to notice...to notice that I'm slumped on my knees on the rooftop...that while everyone else is here, safe and sound, my own best friend is nowhere to be seen. Violent tremors race through my body. For a moment, I struggle to force words past the knot in my throat.

"...They...took him..." I whisper. "...Pulled him out..."

"Oh, no..." Quinn murmurs, the sort of sympathetic response you give to someone who has told you they just lost someone. Jake rushes to my side, drawing me into his arms. I cling to him and he rocks me gently. I don't have tears yet, but I bury my face in his chest. I know why he was the first at my side. It was not because we had tossed around in bed together. It's because he is the only person here who could possibly understand what I am feeling, what agonizing emptiness is swallowing me after being ripped away from my best friend. Even Murphy, placing his chilly little paw on my thigh, can't fathom the pain gripping me in this moment.

A whirring sound makes me turn. A little black spherical drone hovers above the roof.

"Iris!" Quinn exclaims. Iris' hologram projects out and smiles warmly at us.

"Welcome back, old friends. It has been some time since we last spoke."

I feel my blood run cold.

"Iris..." I whisper. I have to ask, though I am dreading the answer. "...When exactly did you last see us?"

"Scanning records. Last interaction: on The Celestial's rooftop. 204 days ago."

Michelle sucks in a sharp breath. "...You're telling us...we've been gone for over six months?"

"That is correct."

"...So we left Diego in those people's hands for all that time?" Sean asks, sounding pained.

"Not necessarily," Iris says. "It is possible they killed him immediately."

I can't help it. I feel my gorge rising and I can't force it down. I pull away from Jake just in time to avoid vomiting on him. He silently pulls my hair back from my face while I retch and heave and choke up acid onto the flagstones.

"It's okay, Alodia," Craig says quickly. "We'll just go back. Flip a switch on that gun thingy or whatever, and we'll change what happened."

"...I...don't think that's an option," Raj says mournfully. He gingerly picks something off the concrete tiles: the time gun, smoking and sparking with blue electricity. "I think it's broken. Maybe something about sending it through its own portal fried it..."

"...There's no going back..." Jake says softly, gently rubbing my back. I choke on a sob, my hand flying to my mouth.

"There was nothing else we could have done," Sean murmurs. "If Alodia hadn't saved us, we all would have been grabbed."

"...But all of us weren't grabbed," I whisper. "...Diego was."

No one can say anything to that. I stare out into the darkness, beyond the rooftop, into the jungle, wondering if he's out there somewhere...if he's even still alive...And then the knot in my throat dissolves and the tears come. Hot, angry, bitter tears of fear and heartbreak. Jake pulls me back into his arms. He doesn't say anything. There's nothing he can say. But he lets me cry, and in time I think I will remember that he did so.

"...Diego..." I whimper my friend's name like a prayer. "...Diego..."

 _Two-hundred and four days ago..._

 _The Western Jungle_

 _Dawn is breaking as the Watchers march Diego through the rainforest. Vines are wrapped tightly around his wrists, binding his hands together in front of him. He resists the urge to flex or wriggle, knowing each motion will just make them rub his flesh a little more raw. He's already aching from the strain of the battle that lead up to this moment. His head swims with exhaustion, grief, and fear._

Looks like I'm heading into the belly of the beast...

 _Tears threaten him again as he eyes the Watchers escorting him, armed with amber blades. He can only pray that Alodia and the others are safe somewhere...somewhen...or else whatever the Watchers do to him, he'll suffer in vain. If he couldn't protect his best friend..._

 _His foot catches a tree root and he trips forward, banging his kneecap on a rock and landing hard in the dirt. For a moment he curls on the path, gritting his teeth against the throbbing pain in his knee. Then, a blue hand extends before him. He looks up to see the unmasked Watcher looking down at him, offering him a hand up. His golden eyes are almost kind. After a moment's hesitation, Diego accepts the offered hand._

 _"...Thanks."_

 _"Tuun dominai," the Watcher replies gently._

 _The group resumes its march. Diego casts his eyes over his surroundings. If he wants to escape, his only hope is to make a run for it. They appear to be coming up on a ridge. If he can beat them to it, he may be able to slide down before they catch him. He swallows hard. It's crazy, and he knows it._

But it's probably what Allie would come up with...

 _The thought makes him smile and strengthens his resolve. He takes a deep breath. And then he bolts._

 _"Vanaa tu'lechina!"_

 _He shoulders one guard out of the way and ducks under another's outstretched arms. As he goes, he locks eyes with the leader. The unmasked Watcher does not react. He simply watches. Diego turns his eyes to the trees in front of him, scrambling through them towards the ridge on the other side of the bushes._

I'm almost there...

 _He breaks through the bushes and into the sunshine. He skids to a stop._

 _"...Oh, no..." he murmurs aloud._

 _The ridge looks down over a broad valley. And a sprawling village of Watchers. Dozens upon dozens in the village below look up at the commotion. Diego closes his eyes and sinks to his knees. The last of his resistance is bleeding out, leaving behind unconditional surrender._

 _Earlier that night..._

 _The Celestial_

 _On the fifteenth floor of The Celestial, she darts through the corridors, looking over her shoulder._

 _"Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear!"_

 _Behind her, a Watcher gives chase, weilding a spear of amber._

 _"Pha'nuqqa!"_

 _She ducks into an open room, casting about desperately for a place to hide. A low growl behind her makes her jump. She whips around to see the Watcher, eyes burning behind an owl mask. He rushes at her, cornering her against the large window._

 _"Qa lutanii..." he growls._

 _Lila cowers against the glass, trembling. She whimpers a little, desperately searching for an escape route. The Watcher lowers his spear, approaching with a length of vine to bind her. As he draws near, though, Lila suddenly unleases a vicious flurry of fists, each strike expertly targeted and brutally delivered to his trachea, his orbital bone, his ribs. He drops the spear. Lila has it in hand before it's hit the ground. With a few twists and spins, the wounded Watcher is now the one cornered against the window._

 _"Now then," Lila says coldly. She blows her hair out of her face and stares down at her prey. "Where is Everett? What have you done with him?"_

 _The Watcher looks at her through his mask, his eyes uncomprehending. Lila jabs his spear at him._

 _"Everett! Where is he?! Rourke! Tell me! Rourke, you understand?!"Lila's voice cracks as sobs start to bubble up from her core. The Watcher just blinks at her. "...The Hydra!"_

 _Now the Watcher's eyes light up. That is a name he knows...and fears. He cowers, pressing himself against the window. Lila smiles coldly._

 _"That's right. Now you know who I'm talking about. Where is he?!"_

 _"Lok rii domal'nuun..." the Watcher whispers._

 _The tears in Lila's eyes spill over. She drops the spear, covering her face with her hands._

 _"You don't know anything. Do you." She lets her hands fall to her sides, glaring at the Watcher, eyes flashing cold fire. "...Then what good are you?"_

 _She kicks him square in the chest. He staggers backwards, shattering the window and plummeting fifteen stories, his terrified howl echoing in the night. Lila cracks her neck. Catching her reflection in the mirror over the dresser, she tucks a stray hair behind her ear, and walks out._

Epilogue

The Runes are the Key

Eventually, my tears dry up. The others manage to goad me inside. I'm surprised they all stayed beside me while I sobbed and vomited for twenty-five minutes, but I suppose no one much wants to separate right now. Once we get inside, though, Sean says that we ought to split up and search the hotel. Some of the Watchers went through the portal before us. They might still be here. I don't think any of us are in any shape for a fight, but I don't say that. I don't say anything. My throat is too dry and raw from sobbing.

"I'll keep an eye on her," I hear Jake murmur. He takes my hand. "Won't let anything happen to her."

 _My best friend has been kidnapped. If he's still alive, he's been alone for six months. I couldn't protect him. The worst possible thing has already happened to me._

But I don't say that, either. I let Jake lead me.

In the wrecked ballroom, among the broken glass and spilled wine and overturned tables, I find my cutlass, and the knife from the mountain climbing outfit Quinn found for me, lying just where I left them when we fled. I bend to pick them up. Somehow, reclaiming my weapons cuts through the numbness and grief and awakens my resolve.

...I have to find him. I _will_ find him.

 _Diego...I won't give up. I will find you. I'll find you and I'll bring you home. I swear it._

In about an hour, we all reconvene in the lobby, satisfied that we're alone in the resort. I sink into an armchair, sitting forward and propping my chin on folded hands.

"The Watchers must've spent a long time searching for us," Sean remarks. "A bunch of suite doors have been kicked in."

"They went through my stuff, too," Michelle says. "My suitcase was completely dumped out."

"Mine too," Quinn confirms.

"So, where are they?" Craig wonders. "Did they just, like, give up?"

"Seems like," I murmur.

"Guess that means we're safe," Zahra says slowly.

"Don't count on it," Estela says flatly.

"We're not safe," I agree. "We're a long way from safe."

Jake puts a hand on my shoulder. "The ones who went through the portal might already be on their way back to wherever the hell the others went."

"Correct," Iris agrees. "And upon their return, the rest will realize it likely means that you have re-emerged in this time as well."

"We still have some time before anything happens," Sean says. "Let's just try to get a little rest, clear our minds, figure out what we do next. ...And how we're gonna find Diego."

I look up at him gratefully. He may not understand how badly I'm hurting, but he won't abandon Diego, and that's what's important. We all start to split up again. I start to rise, but Jake catches my arm.

"Come with me a minute, Princess."

"...Where are we going?"

"Just to the couch over here." He leads me over and sits down. "Come sit with me." I sigh and do as he tells me. Gently, he guides my head down into his lap. At first, I resist.

"Jake, don't...I don't want to sleep..."

"Just for a moment, okay, Princess? Your wingmate's not here to make you take care of yourself, so I'm taking over for him temporarily."

I can't tell if his use of 'wingmate' was intentional, or just the slip of an exhausted tongue, but it makes me relent. I lay my head on his lap and surrender to the gentle stroking of my hair.

...The next thing I'm aware of, there is a blanket over me, and a pillow under my head. Jake is gone, but Estela sits on the chair across from me. I sit up slowly.

"Where's Jake?"

"Sent him to get some rest," Estela says. "Promised to keep watch on you in the meantime."

"...How long have I been asleep?"

"Not long. Only about an hour and a half. But long enough to do a little good, I hope."

I push back the blanket and swing my feet to the floor, casting my eyes around the lobby. Aleister and Iris are behind the concierge desk. Aleister is studying something intently in front of him.

"What've they got over there?" Estela wonders. I get up, draping the blanket over my shoulders, and the two of us wander over.

"Hey, guys. Whatcha reading?"

"We seem to have found a note left behind by unknown persons," Iris explains.

"This wasn't here before, was it?" Aleister asks, passing a scrap of notebook paper over to me. I examine the words scrawled on the page in writing that suggests the hand holding the pen was pressing hard to avoid wobbles from trembling.

 **12 letters = HADEAN ZODIAC!**

 **The RUNES are the key!**

 **LUPUS**

 **month by month by month by month**

"What on earth? Who wrote this?"

"We've been gone for months," Estela points out. "Anybody could've come in here."

"I did not detect any entry to the resort after the intruders abandoned their search," Iris says.

"What do all these scribbles mean?"

Aleister sighs. "I...I believe it must be the notes of someone who was trying to solve the password on my father's office computer. The password was twelve letters long."

"The note refers to twelve letters as well," Iris points out helpfully.

"Thanks, computer," Estela mutters. "We got that part."

I look at the notes for a long moment. "...I think it's time we crack that code ourselves."

Through the floor-to-ceiling windows in Everett Rourke's office, the island shimmers in the moonlight, looking deceptively peaceful. I might almost forget, looking out this window, that somewhere in that sprawling jungle, my best friend is a captive. Almost. I turn my attention to the holographic monitor glowing softly on the glass desk. I approach the interface and touch the glass. The screen flashes red. I swear under my breath.

"Dammit, why won't it-"

"Allow me." Aleister rests his hands on the glass surface. The screen flashes green and displays a message: _**DNA MATCH CONFIRMED. ENTER PASSWORD**_

"You really are Rourke's son," I murmur.

"Of course I am," he says flatly. "Saying things that are not true is a waste of one's breath."

I look at the screen, now displaying the twelve boxes for the password.

"Why are some of the spaces different colors than the rest?" Estela wonders aloud. I blink, realizing for the first time that the third, fourth, ninth, and tenth spaces are highlighted in yellow.

"Not sure. Show me the note again?" Estela passes it to me, and I scan it quickly. " 'Twelve letters equals Hadean Zodiac'. Well, a zodiac is twelve signs, so that's one letter for each sign. That makes enough sense."

"The zodiac? Like Sagittarius and stuff?"

"I don't believe so," Aleister says. "This is referring to a 'Hadean Zodiac'. In geology, the Hadean Era is the period when the earth was first formed, 4.6 billion years ago."

"And that's different how?"

"Different constellations. Which ones appear in the sky over a given spot change little, year over year, but over billions of years, very different stars may have been seen from La Huerta."

"So, if the Hadean Era had different constellations, a zodiac based on that sky would have different signs too," I conclude. "Wait...could that be why the stars are different now? Are we somehow seeing the sky as it was billions of years ago?"

"Impossible to determine," Iris says. "But it is a possibility."

"Okay. But that's still twelve letters for a zodiac," Estela points out. "Twelve constellations for twelve months."

"The question is which constellations," Aleister says. "And in which order?"

"And what are these runes they're talking about?"

"...I think I might know," I say softly. "Wait here."

I rush down to the rainforest suite and push open the door. The room inside is completely trashed. How much is from the Watchers searching it, and how much Jake and I did in the hours beforehand is hard to say. But I don't have time to figure it out. I throw the blankets back from the bed and slide my hand under the mattress. To my relief, I feel a thick sheaf of folded paper. I pull it out and unfold it. The dossiers are all there, pictures included. I slip out and hurry back up to the office and show them to the others.

"I've been finding these since we got here. I found the first ones the first time we came to this office. Then there were more at the observatory and the marina. ...Then when we found the security center behind the game room, I found mine. And yours, Aleister. Anyway, they've all got symbols stamped on them. I think _these_ are the runes."

"So they were watching all of us," Aleister says irritably, "and you neglected to share?"

"...I told Diego. I didn't know who else to trust. I still don't."

"...A fair point," he concedes.

"I've seen symbols like this before," Estela remarks. "Carved into some spots on the island."

"Same here. And I think these are the key to figuring out the zodiac."

"Fortunately, you seem to have managed to collect dossiers on all of us," Aleister says.

"So we've got all the runes we need to figure this out."

"Okay, anyone got a pen and paper? I have a feeling this is could get confusing."

Estela flips over the page of notes, and Aleister produces a pen. Carefully, I write down twelve months, putting each on its own line.

"Okay, so I have a hunch that each of us gathered here was born in a different month." I scribble in the two I know off the top of my head. "I'm January 1st, and Diego is March 12th. What about you two?"

"June," Estela says.

"The eighth of August," Aleister adds.

I carefully write those down. "All right. So let's start with these four, working out the runes."

Aleister's is on top, so we start with that one.

"This rune resembles a colossal, fanged beast," Aleister remarks. "Most likely one that the ancient peoples of the earth spoke of in whispered legends."

Estela snorts. "Looks like a common garden snake to me."

"...Anyone know of any snake constellations?"

"Scanning..." Iris chimes. "Constellation found. Serpens. The Snake."

"It fits. It even has 'Serpens' listed as your codename."

I write it down and flip to my own dossier. I shiver as my eyes land on it, the almost blank page. Only my correct birthdate, a birthplace I am suddenly not so sure of, and one big question: "WHO IS SHE?!"

"Wow," Estela breathes. "These people were really thrown for a loop by you, Alodia."

"A threat assessment of ten?!" Aleister cries incredulously. "How is Alodia more of a threat to this place than I am?! I'm his son, for Christ's sake!"

"Alodia, why does it say here that you were born on La Huerta?" Iris asks. "I have no record of this."

"...I don't know. It's gotta be a typo or something."

"So what's this symbol supposed to be? It looks like a DNA double-helix."

"...Or links of a chain," I muse.

"I don't know of any chain constellations," Aleister says. "...But I believe Andromeda is also called The Chained Woman."

"Correct," Iris confirms.

"Well, that bodes well for me, given the sea monster," I mutter, scribbling. "Okay. Now Estela."

I search through the pile and find hers. It's not difficult to pick out, being the one that's mostly redacted. She takes it from me and looks it over.

"Doesn't look like they found anything serious on me. They even got my birthday wrong."

"Really?"

"Look. It says January, but I was born in June. Dumbasses."

"You're right," I say. "I'm the one who was born in January. ...Hope this doesn't throw off the pattern. ...I think we should assume Rourke knew your real birth month. We can mess around with it if not. Now if we can figure out your symbol..."

"I believe it is a coat hanger," Aleister declares.

"What? No! It's obviously a badass dragon!" Estela cries.

"Are you positive? Are there any coathanger constellations?"

"Scanning...constellation: Coathanger...Not found."

I snort. "Let's stick with dragon. That one's easy. Draco."

I pull out Diego's dossier, and I can't help swallowing hard. I don't want to let them read it, don't want to give them my best friend's secrets and insecurities, especially when I don't know where he is. Perhaps it's hypocritical or unreasonable of me to parade everyone else's files out while still protecting Diego, but I can't help myself.

"His is a dog. I don't think it could be anything else."

Estela looks at me for a long moment, and then nods. "Canis Major then. Who's next."

"Craig's up."

We work through a few more. I meticulously write down birth months and we work out constellations from the symbols stamped on the dossiers, getting the names we don't know from Iris. Craig, November, Ursa Major. Quinn, July, Delphinus, the Dolphin. Zahra, September, Corvus, the Crow.

"Jake's looks like a wolf to me," I say.

"Truly remarkable deduction skills, Alodia. A regular Sherlock Holmes."

"Aleister," Estela says sharply.

"...Apologies. Only joking."

I stick out my tongue. "I think he's the Lupus mentioned in the notes."

"Like the autoimmune disorder?"

"No, like the Latin word for wolf. It's what the Watcher's leader called him on the beach. They called Sean 'Aquila'. Eagle."

"That would seem to match the symbol on his dossier," Estela agrees. "Put Aquila down for May."

Aleister pulls Grace's dossier from the pile and gasps. "What is this?! A mugshot?! It must be a forgery!"

"Or maybe Little Miss Bookish is tougher than we thought."

"Hmmph. Well, her symbol is clearly a swan. A creature known for its grace, I might add."

"Iris, what is the name of the swan constellation?"

"Scanning...constellation found: Cygnus, the Swan."

"Okay, now what about Michelle?"

"Another bird, I think."

"A peacock, I presume."

"Correct," Iris agrees. "Constellation: Pavo. The peacock. An appropriate symbol in this case."

I blink at her. "Was that an Iris burn?"

Iris' holographic lips curve in a placid smile.

"What on Earth is Raj supposed to be? A horse shooting a bow and arrow?"

"I'm guessing it's a centaur," Estela says.

"Like Sagittarius?"

"No, Sagittarius isn't visible from the sky here."

"I have recorded that Proxima Centauri, the nearest star to our system, is visible from the island. Perhaps that could help."

I think for a moment before writing down, _Centaurus_.

"That's it...that's all of them." I look down at what I've written.

January: Alodia - Andromeda

February: Jake - Lupus

March: Diego – Canis Major

April: Grace - Cygnus

May: Sean - Aquila

June: Estela - Draco

July: Quinn - Delphinus

August: Aleister - Serpens

September: Zahra - Corvus

October: Raj – Centaurus

November : Craig – Ursa Major

December: Michelle - Pavo

"...Okay, so if the note is saying what I think it's saying, we have to take the first letter of each constellation in order..." On the page below, I scribble down the answer.

ALCCADDSCCUP

I frown. That doesn't make any sense. Then I take a second look, and some letters start to jump out at me. I take another look at the screen, with four spaces highlighted. It clicks. I practically dive at the computer in my haste to enter the password. My heart pounds in my throat.

AlccADDSccUP

The computer chimes.

"We're in!" I cry triumphantly.

"Oh my god, you did it!"

"Finally! What was the password?" Aleister comes to look over my shoulder and frowns. "Gibberish."

"Not exactly. Read between the highlighted letters."

"AL—ADDS—UP. All adds up."

Aleister groans. "My father cannot be serious."

"Well, I hope he's right, because so far nothing on this island adds up." I sigh. "Okay, let's see what we can find on this thing. I'll do a file search."

I run the search, but only one file shows up. I try the search again. I click through file folders. Still the same. No matter what I try, I can only find one file on the whole computer.

"You're joking!"

"Dammit," Estela growls. "Bastard must have wiped the drive. There's nothing on here, but that one program!"

" ' '," I read. "...Awaken what?"

Estela purses her lips, knitting her brow. "...I say we find out."

"...Right. Here goes nothing."

I start the program. Immediately, I hear a soft hiss like steam.

"Where is that coming from?"

"Look!" Estela cries. She points to one of the marble columns in the office. Steam pours out of the base and rolls across the floor. I step towards it.

"Alodia, I must advise against any approach!"

I ignore Iris' warning. I step up close to the column, steam coiling around my legs. My fingertips graze the black marble. And then, with a mechanical whirr, the marble rises into the ceiling. It was a casing. A cover. A hollow shell. Underneath it is a clear tube, filled with a green, glowing fluid...and a man floating inside, asleep. In an instant, I recognize his face. It leers down from a portrait in the lobby.

Aleister steps up beside me, touching the glass with a trembling hand.

"...Father..."


End file.
